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 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.
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.
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.