Swim stops were cancelled due to weather without consulting passengers. Some activities were cancelled either because of equipment malfunction. A better hostess would be good.
- Malcolm , 07/10/2024 06:54, Travelled with Family
Hi Malcolm - thank you for your review. We're glad to hear you found us to be a good company to travel with. For everyone's safety, we were sorry to see that a swim stop wasn't possible due to the unusually poor weather conditions, and we understand this affected your experience. We’re pleased to see that the hostess received all 5-star reviews for your departure. Once again thank you for your feedback.
A number of the excursions were cancelled and there was no replacements or suggestions to do. This was very disappointing as we specifically booked the trip for the excursions. The limited excursions that were offered were very disappointing.
- Kate, 17/06/2024 11:26, Travelled with Friend/s
Hi Kate, Thank you for sharing your feedback with us and for providing 5-star ratings for the crew and boat in general, it is appreciated. The excursions offered are through 3rd party providers and changes can occur at any time. We understand that excursions are a significant part of the experience, and we regret any inconvenience caused by their cancellation. It's great to see from your feedback you were able to enjoy other aspects of the cruise.
Booked based on Explorer being best suited for couples, young professionals and 'young at heart' travellers. Didn’t expect at 44, to be the second youngest guest, with the majority being 70s. The boat was fine, the bedroom smelled a bit damp and there were broken fixtures in the bathroom. The crew were great, and very friendly. Disappointed the sundeck bar / bbq area wasn’t used. Also, the ‘€25 bbq’ which was cooked in the oven was a poor offering, and unsurprisingly didn’t go ahead. All in all, I had a great time, but had I have been much younger, would’ve been disappointed with so many older guests.
- Jonathon , 18/09/2023 09:23, Travelled with Friend/s
Hi Jonathon, Thank you for your feedback. It's great to know that the crew were friendly and welcoming, however we are disappointed to hear the ages onboard were misaligned with your expectations. Our Explorer cruises are designed to offer a diverse and inclusive experience for travelers of all ages over 15 years. Whilst we do attract a wide range of guests, including young professionals and the 'young at heart' travellers, age demographics can vary from one cruise to another. We aim to create a welcoming atmosphere for everyone, and we're glad to hear you had a great time onboard. We'll take note of your comments regarding room conditions and food offerings to further enhance our services, and we appreciate your feedback provided for the onboard meals, rating us 4-5 out of 5 stars, thank you. We hope you'll consider cruising with us again in the future.
Loves the boat and the crew and our host, Ivanna, was amazing, however food overall, cabin service change over, and upfrontness about our cabin, specifically, could be much improved. Pleasantly surprised at breakfast as more options than we were expecting, however, lunch service was very hit or miss. More vegetables at each meal, ability to know what the meal was ahead of time, in order to decide if we wanted to partake, as well as more snack options available through swim stops. Advised to not bring food on board but ledt hungry with no options until port. Enjoyed captains dinner but wished it had been during a different port that had limited dining. Stari Grad had great options we wanted to enjoy but due to planned dinner, missed, while other ports, such as Pomena, had very limited options. As for cabin, size, privacy, ensuite bathroom, and bed were great, but dealt with such heavy fumes with no way to air out and then had terrible pipe issue that could be proactively managed.
- Britney, 14/08/2023 10:01, Travelled with Friend/s
Hi Britney, thank you for your review. We greatly appreciate your positive feedback about the boat, cabin, crew, and Ivanna, our wonderful host. We're glad to hear you enjoyed your daily breakfasts, and upon checking our internal records, I can see that the fumes issue was resolved promptly after following our resolution process - thank you for following this process. We are also pleased to acknowledge your valuable feedback on our food service, Captain's Dinner and cabin experience. Your suggestions about meal options, and snack availability are noted, and we'll consider these for future improvements. The location of the Captain's dinner can vary as there are a number of factors that contribute to the location however, you will always be updated by your Onboard Representative once the location is confirmed. Your insights are important to us, and we're committed to enhancing your overall experience. We hope to welcome you back aboard in the future, providing you with an even more enjoyable journey.
Better coffee Quiet air conditioning More towels Post the menu so we know what we are eating Have excursions into villages in the mornings- swim stops after lunch.
- Cynthia, 10/07/2023 18:15, Travelled with Friend/s
Much of the trip was fantastic but there are some changes that could improve the experience The food could be better and diners should be told what they are having beforehand. The captain never came to the captains dinner, and although he maneuvered the boat with great skill, he did not interact with passengers at all, even when there were difficulties. Many people had rooms and bathrooms that reeked of sewage. The bar prices were fair, but one of the bartender was completely unskilled and clearly unhappy with his job. The pours were so small we often had to go back or complain. Vishko was very friendly and interacted with the passengers well. The excursions were fun and well timed. The greatest fun was meeting and socializing with others from around the globe. They made the trip fantastic.
- Catherine , 20/06/2023 21:35, Travelled with Friend/s
Hi Catherine, thank you for your review and for taking the time to provide us with further feedback on your cruise. We are so pleased that your cruise was fantastic, we were happy to have you join us for the week in Croatia. I will be sure to pass your kind words and comments onto Vishko, thank you for this. Your feedback is very important to us and the points raised will be passed over to the relevant departments where improvements will be made where possible. Thanks again for joining us this season!
We travelled as 4 singles and all had our own room. One of the room had a disgusting sewerage smell the entire trip. They do not have a maintenance person on the boat. The BBQ meal at €25 was disappointing. The dining room has plastic tables and chairs and is set up like a school event rather than a cruise. Unlike other boats that we could see, you are not allowed to eat outside.
- Therese, 29/05/2023 02:55, Travelled with Friend/s
Hi Therese, Thank you for taking the time to provide us with your feedback. At times if there is bad weather, smell can occur in the bathroom emitting from the shower drains. This is due to the movement of the ships on the water whereby this movement opens up airflow at the back of the pipe and into the bathroom. This is addressed in the Welcome Speech by the Sail Croatia Representative on board. Your points raised regarding BBQ and decor have been noted and this will be communicated with the relevant teams so we can make improvements where possible. Your feedback is very important to us, so we appreciate this and wish to thank you.
Sail Croatia has some fine tuning to work on. Food was mediocre and cold at times. Repetitive breakfast and no options for customers. Rooms were amazing. Sime and Dino were amazing. Overall, I will not be a repeat customer which is unfortunate as I was hoping to be.
- Daniela, 01/05/2023 00:51, Travelled with Family
Hi Daniela, thank you for your review. We appreciate your comments regarding Dino and Sime and we will be sure to pass your lovely comments on to them. It's great to know you enjoyed your room onboard the boat, we agree, they are spacious and light. In regards to the food, we have passed your comments on to the Chef via our Operations Manager and we appreciate you highlighting this to us so we can look to improve this aspect of our cruise. Thank you.
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.
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.
Ship and rooms should be more in working order . Items shouldn’t be broken or makeshift . Had to ask for new towels after being told they would be changed. Our bedsheets weren’t even changed out. Never bothered to follow up after having to request. Some of the crew’s excellent service made up for others sub par performance . As a parent, Incident on ship was alarming and could’ve ruined the cruise, had to try hard to trust things would be alright . Swimming spots was occasionally sub par. Consistency in swim locations would have made things excellent.
- Rey, 05/07/2022 10:42, Travelled with Family
Hi Rey - thank you for your review. We appreciate you taking the time to review your cruise. Upon checking our reports, I can see that a mid-week cabin service was complete, including bedding and towel change on your boat - I could not see any issues being raised by yourself to your Onboard Representative. If this was missed for any reason, we would hope that guests would highlight this to their Onboard Representative. We understand that there was an incident onboard and our Rep, Captain and crew were on-hand to assist where possible. All swim stops are monitored and a member of staff is always on watch to ensure the safety of guests. Our Captain will chose the best secluded bays, these are in a variety of exclusive locations for your enjoyment. Thank you again for your review.
We had two cabins above deck. One was very nice and quiet, 14 but the twin cabin 19 for our adult children was horrible. It sat right over the engine and was so loud, it was unbearable. It also didn’t have a safe. Overall the week was
- Magi, 04/07/2022 22:10, Travelled with Family
Hi Magi - thank you for taking the time to review our cruise. We are pleased that you enjoyed your quieter cabin and hope that you enjoyed your time overall. However we are disappointed to read that your children's cabin experienced noise issues. We have a rigorous process in place for any issues that arise, and the first step is to discuss with your Onboard Representative, if no action is taken then you are welcome to escalate to the Operations Manager and/or Managing Director. Having checked our internal reports, I cannot see that the noise issues were raised with our Onboard Representative. If they were raised, we would have found an immediate solution to ensure that everyone is happy onboard. We are disappointed we were not given the opportunity to rectify this issue whilst you were onboard. Thank you again for your review and we hope to have you join us in the future.
A good basic offering from Sail Croatia. We got to see some beautiful islands. Our host, Iona, was fabulous at pulling everything together. For our group, the food and its presentation was an issue. Breakfasts were of poor quality - we gave feedback and for a couple of days it improved slightly. If you have any food intolerances, I believe this would be an issue for them (I am a vegetarian). Simple things like better quality wine on board, water on the table at meal times, side plates for the bread would all help.
- Anonymous, 13/06/2022 07:33, Travelled with Friend/s
Hi there, thank you for your review - we appreciate it. Thank you for your kind comments regarding your host Iona and the beautiful islands - we agree, they are simply stunning! Thank you for your feedback on the meals provided and this will be passed on to the chef. I have also checked the feedback regarding the meals for all other guests onboard the boat, on your departure date, and the ratings provided were all 4-5 stars for breakfast and lunch. We understand that the meals served are not always to each individual taste. We really do appreciate your comments regarding the wine onboard, water on the table at meal times and side plates which will be passed on to our team, thank you.
Our guide Anna was enthusiastic; warm and helpful. The the other guests were great fun and the islands were nothing short of wonderful Sail Croatia (Cristal) staff did a good job with the food and cleanliness but were not at all friendly or willing to go the extra mile to make our stay enjoyable. This was very disappointing. They did not know our names, smile or ever say hello, and scowled when we asked for something which may have run out or if the coffee was turned off. And the captain only attended the captain’s dinner for ten minutes and did not even say hello. We loved the cruise but for this reason we would be reluctant to recommend this company for fellow travellers. Our only change for the other details was that we would prefer cold lunches such as salads, ham and bread. And we felt it should have finished when we reached Debrovnik as Anna had finished and gone; and it was not nice staying in the port beyond the bridge.
- Jenn, 30/09/2019 14:17, Travelled with Friend/s
Hi Jen, Thank you for your review. We appreciate all your comments and suggestions. We are pleased to hear that your guide Anna was professional, welcoming and friendly and that the other guests onboard were a wonderful group of people. We are also really pleased to hear that the meals served and cleanliness of the ship were all to a high standard, and we appreciate your suggestion of having cold lunches on some days. However, we are disappointed to read your comments regarding the crew. 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 and we are sorry to hear this was not the case. Having a look at the feedback for your week onboard, the crew have been rated 4-5 stars which includes the captain, chef, waiter and sailor. I have passed your comments on to our Operations Manager to highlight with the captain. Thank you again for making us aware and we hope to have you onboard one of our cruises again, to provide you with a 5-star experience!
We traveled on Crystal for our honeymoon on 7/27.Our host Mia was very hospitable and attentive through out our stay.During our stay on Crystal we enjoyed the swim spots and the spacious layout of the boat.It was a great way to travel about the country.The cruise was advertised as being for "young professionals" however we found ourselves on a boat with the majority of the guests being in their 60's and a family with teenagers, not what we expected nor what we wanted.Bar tending was the most disappointing part of the experience.Both of our servers could pour beer/wine, but that was it.The bar menu listed cocktails, but the 2 employees could only make 4 different drinks (all of which tasted awful).Tatiana would only make an Aperol Spritz, and had a less than welcoming disposition. They both sat on the couch on their phones and made us feel like we were inconveniencing them when we ordered a drink.The trip was lovely but for a honeymoon& price we expected the crew to be more hospitable.
- Rebekah, 15/08/2019 01:58, Travelled with Family
Thank you so much for your review. Thank you for choosing to spend part of your honeymoon with us. We are pleased to hear that your host Mia was very hospitable and attentive during the cruise. It's also nice to know that you enjoyed your accommodation onboard Crystal and found the cabins nice and spacious. The amazing swim stops are just lovely aren't they! We are sorry to read of your disappointment with some aspects which I wish to expand on; our Explorer cruises generally appeal to travellers who feel they fit within our 'young professionals and young at heart' description, however are open to all ages over 15 years as mentioned under our FAQ page. We appreciate you sharing your experience with us and we will be looking into further training for the bar staff and will pass your comments on to the Operations Manager to investigate further, thank you. We hope that these issues didn't detract from gorgeous Croatia as a whole. Thank you.
bags brought to room on arrival to begin trip better linen service , no bed sheet change for the entire trip and only 1 replacement towel service paper cups for morning breakfast instead of regular china cups.' Food was ok Captains dinner disappointed he never spoke to the group to welcome them aboard. Boris the rep was good as well as Ivan ( bar and food server guy) would not recommend Sail Croatia to friends.
- dorothy, 26/06/2019 12:50, Travelled with Friend/s
Thank you for your review. We hope that you did enjoy some aspects of the cruise, and Croatia as a whole. We are really pleased to hear that Boris and Ivan provided you with great service. Baggage service is not an inclusion on our cruises however, is a great suggestion which we appreciate and will pass on to the relevant team. Linen service occurs mid-week and upon request, additional towels can be given providing there are extra supplies. There is just one point in your review that I just need to clarify for other travellers considering booking with us. We have a process in place outlined in our Pre-departure information, our Welcome Speech and via our Sail Croatia App, which provides guests with information on how to raise any concerns whilst on the cruise. Having a look through our reports, I cannot see anything being reported to our Rep, crew or Operations Manager. Given the opportunity, we will always try to rectify the situation immediately so you remain happy on our cruise. Thanks again.
Good espresso coffee would make a wonderful start to the day and should be on offer when passengers are on board. Refrigerated water or a means of cooling water in hot summer weather would add to customer comfort. A change of cabin linen half way through would be great. Meals were good apart from overcooked vegetables. Stan Law was the best part of our trip - Stan put 119% effort.into his passengers comfort. He was knowledgeable (though sometimes too talkative) and willing to assist in whatever way he could. We were not expecting him to give us a tour of the towns we overnighted in - very helpful as a quick orientation; so please keep it up. All staff were courteous and willing, but I do wonder whether they risk burn out having to work 24/7 for 6 months. Perhaps some time off may between 7 day cruises may circumvent this in the longer term - something management should consider. Valuing your staff goes a long way!
- Anonymous, 07/08/2017 07:28, Travelled with Family
Firstly I\'ve done your cruise 3 times now on various boats and trips and routes. I think you do a great job and everyone has a really good time. There are a few things I\'d like to mention. One is your website, it\'s a little confusing and I say this as I understand your concept and how it works now but it took me a few trips to work it out, and I can tell the passengers didn\'t understand the levels of boats really and there were some younger ones on the young professional cruise who didn\'t know you could go on the premier plus but do the 18-35\'s and I think it\'s a shame as it would have been better for them. They loved it all the same but I know what they are missing. The young professionals has a lot of couples and for me was almost like going on my own as didn\'t want to intrude and couples like to be with other couples so at times I was alone on the young professionals. I also think rather than book all on line till the website is clearer people should call and it should be explained.
- Nicola , 05/09/2016 07:41, Travelled with Friend/s
Thank you for your feedback - it was great to have you join us for the 3rd time! We are always looking at ways to improve our website and make it as clear as possible so that our guests can find the right cruise for them. To make it easier for guests using our website, under our Navigator cruise for example, we have prices for all our available Navigator boats as well as images of our Navigator boat types which show our boat range, from Standard to Premier Plus. We also have an online cruise assessment which is available to assist our guests in finding the right cruise for them. If a guest is unsure about which cruise to book, we are of course here to assist. We are pleased to hear some of the younger travellers had a good time overall and glad you also had a great time with us. Thank you again for your feedback.
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.
1. Friendlier staff - asking for drinks / coffee was not received well by the bar staff 2. Accommodating our needs - we asked for certain alcohol to be brought onto the boat to be sold to us which was completely ignored and declined by the staff which I cannot understand why at all when we would be paying for it? 3. Selling food - we weren't allowed to bring food onto the boat but if you missed breakfast you could then not buy anything and had to wait until lunch?! Not my idea of a holiday 4. No flexibililty - there was no flexibility in terms of if we wanted to spend longer at a swim stop or port. Overall its really hard to ruin a holiday in Croatia but I would not recommend using Sail Croatia to my friends for their future travels sadly.
- Nicholas, 27/07/2016 17:49, Travelled with Friend/s
Thank you for your feedback. I am sorry that you didn't find the staff friendly, your comments have been passed onto our Operations Team to discuss with the Captain of the ship. The bar is operated by the Captain and it is at his discretion what is sold, I'm sorry they were unable to accommodate you with your drink preferences. With regards to food on-board, Breakfast and a 3-Course Lunch is served every day. I'm afraid food from outside the boat, isn't allowed to be bought on by guests, however I have passed your comments on about having the option to purchase snacks on-board so this can be looked into. With regards to your comments about flexibility, the Captains are on a fixed itinerary, so whilst they try and ensure guests have enough time to swim as well as having enough time in the ports, swim stops may have to be missed or cut short so the ship can reach each destination on time and have space to dock in the ports. Thank you again for your feedback.