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.
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.
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!
Whilst Croatia is absolutely beautiful, prepare yourself for the low quality of the boat and the extremely tiny confines of your room. Our shower, if you could call it that, didn’t even have a holder on the wall, you had to hold it yourself like a tap and shower on top of the toilet. The smell in the bathroom was horrific and with three people crammed in a room hardly fit for one person, it was certainly an experience. The tour leader and crew however were absolutely lovely and made the experience more bareable. If you’re not into budget travelling, sail Croatia is not for you.
- Keiran, 14/08/2023 13:10, Travelled with Friend/s
Thank you for your review. We appreciate your kind words about the tour leader and crew, and we're glad they were able to enhance your journey. We are disheartened to hear of your disappointment with the accommodation. It's important to us that our guests have a comfortable stay. We would like to mention that our Ensuite cabins are of a similar size to the Standard cabins, and our website provides images that depict the layout of the bathrooms, including the shower over the sink. We regret that you didn't have an optimal experience, but we encourage guests to notify us of any issues during their cruise, as our team is always ready to address concerns promptly. Our resolution process aims to ensure guest satisfaction, and had we been informed during your cruise, we would have taken immediate steps to find a suitable solution. Thank you for all your comments and thank you for travelling with us this season.
Firstly we were one guy one girl FRIENDS only travelling and we booked two single beds. A week before going on the cruise we were told that there were to many solo travellers on the boat so we had to share a double bed. If we knew this could happen before booking then we wouldn't of chosen this cruise. When we got onthe boat we found out that there was only one solo traveller out of the 36 of us..A group of 8 girls all had separate beds and said if they were asked to share then they would of been more than happy too. It made the trip not so pleasant sleeping next to someone of the opposite sex that you are not in a relationship with. Secondly our host/guide or whatever you call him was useless. He was unapproachable, unfriendly, not helpful, grumpy alot of the time and wouldn't cater to everyone. Would say comments like "I'm the guide, you do it my way" All and all I didn't enjoy this and wouldnt recommend it
- Jess, 01/08/2023 07:29, Travelled with Friend/s
Hi Jess, thank you for taking the time to review your cruise with us this season. We are sad to read this as we receive such high rated feedback from other travellers for your cruise and ship throughout the season, so this is a shame. It is not possible to pre-book twin or double bedding on the Navigator cruise type Jess, so I can confirm you did not book for two single beds, I'm afraid. Our ships can be twin, bunk, or double bed cabins as stated in the FAQS, and also on the Premier Ship page. Feedback is very important to us and I will be sure to pass your comments on to the relevant teams. Thank you for joining us this season in Croatia.
The toilet was broken on lower deck which meant we had to constantly walk upstairs. This was inconvenient and not what we were promised for what we paid. We also paid for air conditioning which often turned off, meaning we woke up extremely hot. We wouldn’t have bought it if we had known it would randomly stop working. We didn’t have access to any tissues/toilet paper downstairs which was also frustrating as we had nothing to wipe things up with. When we arrived home from clubs we had been taken to the water was always empty which meant we had to ask other boats for water. When I called our representative he said all the deck crew were asleep and to buy it. This was completely unacceptable as we were meant to be supplied water. On our last night we didn’t get a family dinner or barbecue or cocktail which was on our itinerary. Often weren’t told about happy hour on the boat. It was not worth the amount money we paid.
- Ruby, 24/07/2023 14:39, Travelled with Friend/s
Hi Ruby, thank you for taking the time to write your review and provide us with your feedback. It is a shame to read you were unhappy with certain aspects of your cruise, especially as I can see we received a lot of positive feedback from guests during your cruise and for this ship and throughout the season in general. We do understand it is very hot in Croatia during the summer, especially when you joined up which can make it difficult to sleep. We have our 'ship types' displayed via our website so guests can view images and details about each ship category. This gives in-depth information of the amenities to ensure that our advertising accurately represents the accommodations provided. We highly recommend checking this prior to booking your cabin to avoid disappointment. You booked and were accommodated on one of our Standard ships where cabins are with shared facilities and don't have air conditioning as advertised. I would recommend booking next time accommodation onboard a Premier ship where cabins have private ensuite facilities and air conditioning as advertised. As feedback is very important to us, I will be sure to pass your comments onto the relevant teams. Thank you for joining us.
Same bedding and towels for the entire week. Horrible smell in bathrooms. Tasks appeared to be too difficult for crew members, e.g my friend reached out to staff after collision with a sea urchin and they bluntly suggested to pee on it. They should’ve looked at it, tried to assist, help make a doctors appointment, discuss possible options. Rafting excursion was cancelled, no one was advised. Staff expected a tip despite average service and when being tipped there was no appreciation demonstrated, no ‘thank you’, but a careful eye was watching the amount tipped. Our boat leader didn’t make an effort to hype everyone up, it resulted in a mellow experience unlike what was advertised and expected when travelling with the navigator cruise. The itinerary suggests that there should be a group dinner followed by cocktails on our final night, but after money was collected earlier in the day, all staff were unreachable. No one organised a group dinner and our group felt disassembled.
- Anonymous, 24/07/2023 09:11, Travelled with Friend/s
Thank you for taking the time to write your review and provide us with your feedback. It is a shame to read you were unhappy with certain aspects of your cruise, especially as I can see we received a lot of positive feedback from guests during your cruise and for your ship throughout the season in general. 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. It can be found under ‘Resolving Problems Onboard’. As you have provided your review anonymously I am unable to check if you have raised any of the issues mentioned in your review with your representative onboard. I have however checked with our Operations Manager and no issue has been raised with him on your departure which is an action required if you are unhappy with the actions of your representative and their service. We do thank you for your feedback and thank you for joining us.
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.
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.
The website, advertising and itinerary were super different to the experience I had. There was no pirate party or Rave cave. We were unable to go onto the other sail croatia boats at swim stops or at pres. Very dissatisfied and disappointed with the false advertising of events, we wernt notified that they didn’t exist or wernt even happing until day of! The only good thing on the boat was the food.
- Anonymous, 19/06/2023 14:44, Travelled with Friend/s
Hi there! Thank you for taking the time to write your review and share your experience with us. Your positive comments regarding the food is lovely to read and we are so pleased you enjoyed the meals served by our team on board. Your feedback is important to us, so the points you have mentioned will be communicated with the relevant departments. Due to health and safety reasons, it is not permitted for guests to freely socialise between boats at swim stops. Once docked in harbours, or off the ships, guests of course can socialise with lots of different travellers from other boats. The Pirate Party is no longer part of our itineraries and as per our website, this has been replaced with our Blue & White Party in Makarska.
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.
The best part of the trip was the company of others who attended the same week, but everything else about the trip that was handled by Sail Croatia was pitiful. Horrible food, poor planning, disgusting cabins, and more than evident cost-cutting. The wifi was nonexistent and no soap, shampoo, or conditioner was provided. The bath towels provided were dirty and disgusting. I signed for a triple occupancy cabin and it ended up being a mattress on the floor. That is unacceptable. The other participants bonded on the boat over Sail Croatia's failings as a cruise liner. If I knew the lack of amenities provided and the poor organizing, I would not attend.
- Kalee, 01/10/2022 18:52, Travelled with Family
Thank you for your review Kalee. We are sorry to hear you were unhappy with your cabin arrangements and boat in general. I have gone through all the feedback ratings and we were given 4 stars for the 'boat overall'. Our chefs prepare all meals in their small gulleys located onboard the boat, aiming to provide a variety of meals however we understand that this is not always to everyone's taste. Soap, shampoo and conditioning is not included and we advise guests to bring their own onboard to avoid disappointment. Triple cabin consists of a small double bed and single bunk, as advised prior to booking this room type. As they are the same size as a twin share (2 people per cabin) we provide a 10% discount. I understand that you were moved to another cabin free of charge. We hope this was more than suitable. After reviewing the organisation of the cruise by the Onboard Representative, they were rated all 5 stars which includes; destination, organisation and friendliness. We thank you for your review.
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.
Breakfast - always a limited time of an hour and if you wanted a sleepin you then missed breakfast, if you weren't going on an excursion you still had to get up extra early to get breakfast. Had to ask for butter and jam every day as there was none laid on table. Breakfast and lunch were very poor on the first few day until many people complained - Breakfast was greatly improved but not so much the lunch. Lunch could be simplified with mixed salads and cold meats, Lighter meals not so much three course.The food took a long time to be served in between courses. Swim stops were not fantastic as we have had before. It just felt like the crew were in automatic mode without great thought to what they were doing. This was a trip I have enjoyed immensely in the past and have raved about to many people who have also then taken the trip. We paid a lot more this year but seem to have gotten less. So disappointed.
- Nicky, 11/07/2022 08:26, Travelled with Friend/s
Hi there and thank you for your review. We hope you were able to enjoy Croatia whilst you were there and immerse yourself in the beautiful country and culture. We are sorry to hear of your disappointment with some aspects of your cruise. Breakfasts are offered to all guests and the opening times are advised by the Onboard Representative. The chef will always provide more breakfast options upon request. The chef aims to provide fresh meals using local produce, they operate out of a small kitchen and we understand that not all meals are to everyone's taste. We appreciate your comments here and these will be passed on. Lookng at the meal feedback for your week onboard, the average rating was 4 stars. We are sorry to hear you didn't enjoy the swim stops like you had in the past, our captain aims to provide a good balance between land vs sea, mooring up into secluded bays for all guests to enjoy. We do hope that the issues experience didn't detract from your overall enjoyment, as this is certainly not a reflection of the high standards we expect week after week. We hope that you join us again in the future and we thank you again for your review.
PROS: The biking and scenery was wonderful. The cook did a nice job specifically with the lunches we had on board. NEUTRAL: As advertised the berths were very small. CONS: There was no WIFI in the lower berths.The crew smoked everywhere on the boat, so you were subjected to secondhand smoke. We had two bike accidents and there was limited access to medical attention. The lack of medical attention is not the fault of Sail Croatia, but it would be good to have this known. The crew should be asked to wear Sail Croatia shirts. On one day a crew member was wearing an offensive T-shirt.Unless you were the first in line for breakfast there was never enough breakfast cereal, coffee or yogurt. And, the crew member responsible for setting out breakfast food did not see it as his job to replenish any of the items.Last, Sail Croatia does their employees a disservice by not giving travelers some idea on the customary range for tipping.
- Karla, 09/10/2019 08:04, Travelled with Friend/s
Hi Karla, Thanks for taking the time to submit your review. We are really pleased to hear you enjoyed the cycling aspect of the cruise, the beautiful locations and the meals served. I just wanted to clarify a few points raised in your review; WIFI is subject to download limits and coverage. On all our ships there are designated smoking areas, we thank you for making us aware of your experience here and we will be looking into this further. All our ships are equipped with medical supplies and means to get to the nearest hospital if required. We thank you for your suggestion regarding the uniform - this has been passed on to the Operations Manager. Breakfast times are displayed on the board and advised by your representative, upon request, the crew can of course provide you with additional servings. We are sorry to hear the service was not up to standard and we will certainly be highlighting this to the captain for future improvements. Tipping is optional on all our ships and completely at your discretion. We do hope that you enjoyed your time in Croatia and hope that these issues didn't detract from your overall experience.
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.
De humidifiers in low cabins - very damp and lacking fresh air. Often smelled musty or like sewage at times Much too damp At port - we were parked beside party boats. Horrible noise - did not add to the experience. There should be time and noise level limits placed on boats Appropriate vegetarian selection - not everyone eats meat Had to buy meals off shore as there were no veggie options. Longer bike rides - most days were too short Staff were all great
- Heidi, 30/09/2019 06:20,
Hi Heidi, Thank you so much for your review. After viewing your onboard feedback, we are pleased to see that you enjoyed the meals served, rating them 4 stars, and the boat in general 4 stars also, thank you. We have a very strict process for any issues that may arise whilst on your cruise, upon checking our internal reports we can't find any reports for the issues mentioned. Had these been highlighted with your onboard Rep, these issues would've been resolved immediately. On all our ships we have a strict midnight curfew where music and noise is turned off by midnight, I'm afraid we are unable to comment on other companies noise policies. We appreciate your comments regarding the meals, our chef will always offer more of the foods you can eat, in saying this, we will pass these comments on to the Chef, thank you. We are really glad to hear the staff were great, and we hope that you enjoyed your cruise overall. Thank you!
- boat cabins were very damp/musty and particularly the bathrooms smelled very moldy. It made it very unpleasant to be in there, and contributed to a number of us getting sick - the hikes and timelines felt very disorganized with locations changing and guides seeming to not know the route at multiple locations. There was often confusion with timelines where it would be stated different to what was posted or it would change last minute resulting in the need to scramble on or off the boat. - there was no contingency plan or second hike in the case that we were stuck somewhere multiple days or if there was an interest in a different level of hike intensity.
- Anonymous, 16/09/2019 11:36, Travelled with Friend/s
Hi there and thank you for your review. Upon checking the onboard feedback submitted, we are pleased to see you rated the crew 5 stars, the onboard meals 4 stars and the boat in general 4 stars, thank you. We are sorry to hear of your cabin issues. I have checked our internal records and cannot see that these issues were reported to our onboard rep. Had these issues been raised, we would have resolved them with urgency. We understand that due to strong winds the ship was unable to depart Vis, so for the safety and wellbeing of all guests, the captain decided to remain in Vis where you rep organised a museum visit and wine tasting excursion. We hope that the issues onboard didn't detract from your overall experience onboard and in Croatia as a whole. Thank you again for all your comments.
There are areas that need to be improved before I can recommend sailing with Sail Croatia. The cabins weren't very clean. When we checked in, there was hair on the bathroom floor. I also dropped my book under the bed and upon retrieving it found an old condom wrapper on the floor. The lack of proper ventilation in the cabins has led to mold starting to grow. By the end of the week, our entire group was sick from sleeping in the cabins. The entire week was poorly organized. Each day it seemed like the crew was making up the schedule as they went. We understood that weather can be a factor, however there were no contingency plans if the weather was poor. The hikes were also poorly organized. The guide had no idea how to manage the varying abilities of passengers. A couple of times he got lost because he had only done the hike one time before. He kept saying well now I'll know for next time.
- Anonymous, 16/09/2019 08:06, Travelled with Friend/s
Hi there and thank you for your review. We really appreciate all your comments and suggestions for improvements. All our ships are thoroughly cleaned prior to the arrival of new guests, so we are sorry to read of your disappointment with the cleanliness. I have checked our internal records, and cannot see any reports of this to our crew. This would have been rectified immediately upon notifying our onboard rep. However, I have highlighted this to the Operations Manager, thank you. We understand that there was a schedule change due to strong winds, and the alternative option was to go back to Vis where museum visit and wine tasting was organised for you. We appreciate your comments on the guide, he has received 4-5 star ratings for this departure so we are disappointed to read your comments and these will be passed on to our Operations Manager for training and quality purposes. Upon checking the onboard feedback you submitted, we are happy to know you enjoyed the lunches and found the crew to be a welcomed inclusion. Thank you again for all your comments, this is appreciated.
I find it deceiving that you call it "sail" croatia and they aren't sail boats. We were directed to only the main tourist spots, where nothing was original and everything was overpriced. Each night was clubbing or nothing, and there was never a recommended cool laid back wine night or beer spot or cafe. The crew was great and our guide was awesome... but I think this tour company needs to market themselves more accurately and honestly. Ultimately, it was a disappointment for me and travel time could have been better spent.
- Andrea, 09/09/2019 02:08, Travelled with Friend/s
Hi there, thank you for your review and for joining us this season in Croatia. I am sorry to hear you were disappointed with some points of the tour. Our company name is Sail Croatia and we do offer multiple different options to our clients along the Adriatic coast line. We have our Under 39 Yacht Tours on sailing boats, cruises on small motor cruises and also Private Yacht Tours, also on sailing boats. Our website does clearly show the vessels used for each option and on our Navigator cruise page also gives you more information on our Standard ships which is what you booked with us. Thank you for your feedback here and I do hope this did not deter you from having a great 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.
Overall the boat was good on the marija magdalena. There was no ac so it was impossible to sleep and could be purchased but only if 12 out of the 18 people on the boat agreed to pay. The downside was there was also no freedom during our stops in the towns. Our rep planned 5 of our 7 dinners with many of the food being disapointing. When we requested to do our own thing and meet at the boat for "happy hour" we were made to feel guilty about not going along with what he had planned. I understamd that he eats for free or makes comission by taking us as a large group to these meals which we shouldnt be forced to do as they are not included in the price of the sail. Our rep also spent most nights drinking and on the morning of our departure was too hungover to get up and awnser questions we had that morning which almost resulted in me missing my flight. The only good things were the food on the boat prepared by the cook, which were included in the price and the swim spots.
- Em, 02/09/2019 21:23, Travelled with Friend/s
Thank you for taking the time to provide us with this feedback. I am pleased to read overall you did like your ship Marija Magdelena - one of our Ensuite ships. As per our website our Ensuite ships do not have air-conditioning in the cabins included, however our Premier ships do. If you would like air-conditioning we advise booking a Premier ship. Your Representative will provide you with recommendations in each location, however it is entirely up to you how you spend your time in Croatia. You're welcome to eat where you'd like in the evenings. I will however pass this feedback onto our Operations Manager, thank you. I hope this did not deter you from having a great time in Croatia. Thank you for joining us.
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.
This product is advertised as a party cruise however our cruise manager was barely seen, we had noise curfews of 10pm in place every night, activities were restricted and also too many people on activities if you do decide to go on them. Barely any communication from cruise manager and boat staff e.g. change of docking location ending in 20km journey to town and not to mention docking at a terrible dock for 2 nights. Very disappointed in Sail Croatia, the only thing that made this Sail good was that we were with 20 of our friends on the cruise. I felt sorry for the people on the cruise who were solo or couple travellers because of the lack of organisation. Definitely wouldn't recommend.
- Milly, 23/07/2019 07:22, Travelled with Friend/s
Thank you for your review. Just a few points I wish to highlight for anyone thinking of joining our cruises, our cruise manager's are available 24/7 and are available to provide you with all the information and assistance you require. We do have strict noise curfews in place which varies from port to port and is outlined in our Ship Rules via your pre-departure information. For the safety of all guests, the captain decided that it was best to dock in Stari Grad (on Hvar Island) for the 2 nights due to severe storm announcements. I understand your cruise manager had organised transfers to and from Hvar. We are really pleased that you enjoyed the company of your fellow travellers and upon checking our feedback for your departure, we are also happy to see that some of the other travellers in your group enjoyed their cruise experience. Thank you again for your review.
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.
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.
The boat needs to be a higher standard the accommodation and food were disappointing. The staff need to recognize that they cyclist were of differing ability, working to the lowest was very frustrating for experienced cyclists. Communication is key and often we were confused about itineraries and routes.
- Sue, 07/06/2019 08:41, Travelled with Friend/s
Thank you for providing us with a review. I can see that you had booked a cabin on our Ensuite ship as we had no availability on our higher category ship - Premier. We have a guide and a representative travelling with our cycle guests daily, one at the front and one at the back. We feel that this allows for flexibility and to ensure that all fitness levels are catered for. Those of a higher fitness level are more than welcome to stick with our guide at the front. Daily scheduling is outlined by the representative each day, as this will provide you with all the information required before taking off on your cycle journey. We hope that you were able to enjoy other aspects of the cruise and we thank you again.
A lot of things weren't yet open as we went at the start of summer but there were no alternative plans and we weren't notified until the actual day - the cave bar was a big loss! There was nothing planned for the bad weather, it basically rained for the full week so swim stops, kayaking etc was not possible but we weren't given any alternative activities. 18-35 is too wide of an age gap. A 25-35 boat option would work well. The food was far too salty and the vegetarian options at times were poor- we seemed to just get grilled vegetables in replace for all of the meat at every meal! There were no snacks available on board which if you didn't enjoy lunch, aren't able to bring food on board and are somewhere in the middle of the sea can be quite frustrating!
- Susan, 03/06/2019 09:39, Travelled with Friend/s
Thank you for your review. 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. Snacks is something that we may look into for future seasons, we thank you for your comments here. We are sorry to hear about the meal options provided, our chefs try to cater to a wide range of tastes but at times, this is not possible - your comments will be passed on to the appropriate team. Thanks again!
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.
Cycling was great : quality of the accommodation and food was very poor: company and staff were great fun
- Lesley, 28/05/2019 06:44, Travelled with Friend/s
Thank you for your review. We are pleased to hear you enjoyed the cycling aspect of the cruise and found the company and staff were great fun! We appreciate your comments on the accommodation and food, and this will be passed on to the appropriate departments. Thank you again!
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.
Free tea and coffee available on the boat outside meal times. More hanging space for wet clothing and more pegs.
- susan, 13/10/2017 15:37, Travelled with Family
Thank you for your review. Tea & Coffee availability is something we are currently looking into for future seasons. Thank you for your suggestion of more hanging space and pegs, this will be passed on to the Operations Team for potential future improvements. Thank you.
The communication to passengers of last minute changes to the itinerary. Changes were for the worst and not for the better. Some examples of our experience were; docking boat at the same port on consecutive nights & not being able to dock in Hvar. Hvar being a highlight. Not having the opportunity to visit the Blue Caves (aparently due to bad weather & poor choice in schedule change as we had 2 days in the area). It just so happens the same occurred to friends of ours on a previous Sail Croatia cruise. We had a tour leader who was un-enthusiastic most of the time and provided misguided advice at ports, The activities were over priced and not value for money.
- Lisa , 04/09/2016 11:50, Travelled with Friend/s
Thank you for taking the time to provide feedback. I am sorry to hear that you felt the communication to passengers regarding itinerary changes wasn't clear. On some occasions the Captain may change the itinerary due to weather and does this for the safety of passengers. Whilst at the time of docking the weather may seem perfect, this can in fact change drastically within a few hours and the captain will be aware of this hours in advance. In ports such as Hvar where it is quite open and susceptible to rocky seas if a storm strikes the captain may decide to dock at Stari Grad where the port is fully protected. As the boats will be docked for around 12 hours, for the safety of our guests he will decide to dock at the safest port possible that offers the most protection from stormy weather. Customer service is very important to us here at Sail Croatia, and we want to ensure passengers have a positive experience whilst on their cruise, your comments about your Sail Croatia Representative have been passed on to our Operations Manager for further training in this area. We pride ourselves on supporting local businesses and work with local suppliers to provide excursions for our guests that cater to all budgets, we also have the excursion prices listed on our website to help with budgeting prior to the cruise. 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.
While all of the places we ported on the trip were gorgeous, the Sail-Croatia experience was disappointing. The itinerary that we were presented with described beautiful towns and exertions, but failed to mention that that main focus of every single day was which club the boat would be attending that night. I am no stranger to a good party, but this trip was truly a glorified booze cruise and was not what we expected. It is also important to note that the sail-Croatia groups do not have a good reputation in the different ports and so when we were with the big group we often got poor service. sail-Croatia clearly has deals with certain restaurants that they urge you to go to and they were often sub-par. The worst part of the whole trip was that we paid extra for an air-conditioned room due to the forcasted heat at the time of year we were traveling. There was a tiny fan in the room that provided no relief from the heat. It was nearly impossible to sleep. Overall a disappointment.
- Kathleen, 03/08/2016 14:50, Travelled with Friend/s
Hi there, thank you for taking the time to provide feedback. It is great to read that you found the ports gorgeous. In regards to the itinerary,our Navgiator cruises are aimed at 18 to 35 year old travellers looking to socialise, party and experience the Croatian night life. We find that passengers joining this cruise wish to experience the bars and clubs at each port, so the Sail Croatia Representative will organise this for them. We have Explorer cruises which are suitable for those wishing not to partake in a Navigator experience, and we would always recommend this for customers who would like to avoid partying. There are a number of organised cruises in Croatia which have quite large groups dining at different restaurants daily, we are one of the longest, well established cruise companies in Croatia. We have partners who we work with at each destination where guest can recieve discounts, free drinks and/or free entry. Customers are under no obligation to visit these bars, and are welcome to explore themselves or we can provide recommendations of other places to dine. You had booked on an Ensuite ship and air-conditioning isn't available on our Ensuite ships however the cabins do include fans. Air-conditioning is available on our Premier and Premier Plus ships. Thank you for your feedback.