Sail Croatia needs a boat dedicated to solo only travellers. My experience was fun and thoroughly enjoyed it although it was somewhat difficult to socialize with others as they were glued to their friend until roughly day 5 where everyone started to branch out and really connect as a group.
- Anonymous, 11/09/2024 12:41, Travelled Solo
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.
It really depends on the group & crew that makes the trip. The bartender on the boat wasn't the most pleasant and the chef was horrible. I knew going on the boat that the food was not going to be the best but it was horrible. Also, I didn't like how we didn't have to much free time and the swim spots were okay, nothing great either. Overall, the trip was okay.
- Jessica, 09/08/2024 14:15, Travelled Solo
Dear Jessica, thank you for sharing your review of your recent Navigator Cruise. We appreciate your feedback. Thank you for the feedback regarding the food, bartender, and chef. Rest assured, your feedback will be passed on to the team. We hope to welcome you again in the future!
Sail Croatia really let me down with my experience by not mixing the people on our boat. Out of 30 people there were 29 women (13 of which were one big group that were not very interested in socialising outside of their group) the one male was a partner of the only couple on the boat. I believe variety in people would have most definitely improved everyone's experience. While our tour manager was absolutely lovely and kind I was disappointed with their lack of knowledge of Croatia in general. Unfortunately their inexperience showed when they struggled to comand respect and order when addressing the group. This showed when organising activities or even getting people excited meet up to learn about our beautiful scenic stops. The crew onboard were so lovely and accommodating. The food was great. After stopping at a few ports and seeing the variety in types of Sail Croatia Boats I was also disappointed that when booking I was not given options to upgrade to a boat with better facilities.
- Caris, 03/08/2024 08:31, Travelled Solo
Dear Caris, Thank you for taking the time to leave a review and for completing our feedback form. We are delighted to hear that you enjoyed your experience with the crew and the swim stops, and we truly appreciate the high scores you provided on the feedback form. While we always strive to provide the best possible experience for all our clients, we unfortunately cannot guarantee or control the bookings and other clients we receive, including the ratios. As per your enquiry and request, we booked the Ensuite ship category for you. Please note that we do offer higher-tier options, such as our Premier and Premier Plus ships, which were available at the time of your booking. Should you have wished to upgrade, we would have been more than happy to arrange this for you. Once again, thank you for your feedback, and we hope to welcome you on board again in the future. Kind regards,
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.
I felt like it was almost expected of us to drink every single night, which led to many of us feeling sick and terrible by the end of the week and not actually enjoying the beautiful places we stopped at. I wish there were more non-drinking activities so we could’ve gotten to know everyone better. Sometimes it felt like you couldn’t participate unless you were drinking. Our boat was also definitely one of the cheapest models. If I had a little more detail about what exactly each boat entailed I probably would’ve booked the next level up. That being said, the crew was fantastic and our guide was great.
- Julia, 13/09/2023 07:21, Travelled Solo
Hi Julia, thank you for your review! We are pleased to read you were happy with the crew on board and your Sail Croatia Representative, thank you for this. Our Navigator cruises are designed for 18-39 year old travellers looking to socialise, party and meet others, so often some of the guests on board will consume alcohol. This is of course entirely up to each individual. With regards to ship types, the difference between each category can be found on our website and on the Navigator cruise page. I can confirm the Standard ship category you booked is the lowest price and usually aimed at guests on a budget, and usually perfect for travellers backpacking across Europe! Thank you so much for joining us in Croatia this summer.
The food at lunch should be lighter and healthier.; not pasta and risotto. Sandwiches, salads, roasted vegetables, wraps, would be better. We don’t need dessert. Coffee needs to be out during the morning for longer that one hour. Keep coffee out until 11:00 AM. Happy Hour from 6-7. Drinks at bar poor quality. Quality of cabin was not great. I wasn’t expecting much, but the handle was off my drawer in the bathroom & bed and pillow VERY uncomfortable. I DID enjoy my trip as there was more to enjoy than these things and had a great time. Thank you.
- Sarah, 11/09/2023 03:17, Travelled Solo
Hi Sarah, thank you for taking the time to share your experience with us. We are really pleased to hear you enjoyed your time on the cruise and Croatia as a whole. We are disheartened to hear of the issues raised. All cruises include 3-course lunches which is usually a starter, main and dessert - I'm sorry to hear you were unhappy with the lunches served, our chefs aim to provide a variety of meals using fresh, local produce. Upon viewing the feedback you provided, we are happy to know you enjoyed the Captain's Dinner and other aspects of your cruise. We are disappointed to read about the drawer handle and pillow - we have a rigorous process in place for any issues that arise onboard, which is outlined in your pre-departure information and following this process ensures that no incident is left unreported. Had we been made aware, we would have resolved this immediately for you. We understand that coffee is important to some, so we provide filtered coffee which is available during breakfast hours and complimentary instant coffee is also available during the day. You also have the option of capsual coffee payable via your bar tab. We appreciate your comments and are thrilled to know that the issues raised didn't deter from your overall enjoyment onboard.
“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!
First I want to say the crew was amazing, very helpful and friendly. Also the food was epic. Unfortunately on my ship our rep left after 1 day and we were stranded, the new rep came on and bless her soul she was lovely but not suited to a party boat. The boat I was on as well had one big group of friends who didn't really want to mingle that much with everyone else or actually party much which was annoying. My roommate was also very sick and she got me sick, so I'm angry about that because it's ruined my trip. All the food places we went to were hella expensive and meh, also the clubs were over hyped and too expensive. The drinks on the boat were annoyingly over priced and so we just didn't want to pay those prices to drink a lot. I was recommended this by a friend but unfortunately I will be telling people not to waste their money especially if traveling solo. It was the worst part of my trip so far.
- Kirstie, 05/08/2023 11:40, Travelled Solo
Thank you for sharing your experience with us. We are pleased to hear that you found our crew amazing and enjoyed the meals onboard. We are however sorry to hear you were unwell during your cruise which had an affect on your overall experience. We aim to get a good mix of travellers onboard our ships, and whilst our Reps work tirelessly to ensure group dynamics are balanced, this is not always possible as it ultimately depends on the individuals onboard. We understand budgeting is important for guests, so we have a few readily available blogs on our website which details approximate drink prices onboard our ships, and also the type of prices to expect at local restaurants which are updated regularly. We appreciate your feedback as it is valuable to us, and we hope to have you onboard again in the near future.
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 ship, crew, tour leader, food etc. was simply awesome. Can’t fault the destinations and sight seeing either. Absolutely stunning. However the booking system needs serious improvement. Large groups are placed on the boat which inherently makes it hard for solo guests to socialise as these groups are generally not as interested to meet new people. It makes solo guests feel awkward and like a ‘spare wheel’. It was clear our tour manager could see this occurring. It would be far better if solo guests or small groups be placed together, and Sail Croatia would have known these groups were on the ship with me. Pretty disappointed I wasn’t given the option to even downgrade vessel, if that meant I could be with more ‘like-minded’ travellers or guests. I’m going to find it difficult to recommend to others who are solo travelling as well….Coupled to this when placed in a room with a complete stranger, give each guest a key. If either guest wants to do different activities, makes things awk.
- Thomas , 17/07/2023 05:19, Travelled Solo
Hi Thomas, Thank you for taking the time to provide us with your review and your constructive feedback. It is wonderful to read that the ship, the crew, your representative and the sights and sounds of visited destinations didn't disappoint. Your feedback regarding having 2 x sets of keys per cabin is very welcomed and has been passed on to our Operations team and the Captain. Regarding the mix of travellers onboard your cruise, our cruises aren't specifically sold or booked as solo traveller cruises and everyone is welcome onboard. The final mix of travellers is inevitably dependent on any bookings that we receive and I can see we did have some other solo travellers booked apart from yourself. We are sad to hear that the overall mix wasn't to your expectations and satisfactions, however, it is great to see that overall, based on your submitted feedback, you would still recommend us. Thanks again for joining us this season!
I enjoyed the Sail Croatia experience, however, do feel that it can be very much luck of the draw when it comes to other boat personnel, which is such a crucial aspect of the week. When there are multiple large groups on each vessel, it can be hard to really get groups interacting all together, especially for solos. The other issue can be around age disparity. Perhaps more transparency over the booking arrangements of each boat could help this.
- Edward, 11/07/2023 14:52, Travelled Solo
Hi Edward, thank you for taking the time to review your Navigator cruise with us this season - it was a pleasure to have you on board. We're very happy reading that you enjoyed your Sail Croatia experience, this is great. With regards to your feedback on fellow travellers, I will be sure to pass this onto the relevant teams. All of our Navigator cruises are open to guests aged between 18 and 39 years old, so the age range is quite wide and our Reps work hard to create a good group dynamic that everyone on board can enjoy. I can see you had other solo guests on your cruise, which is always nice to see. We hope to see you join us again! Thank you.
The advertising for Sail Croatia isn't clear because the Navigator cruise is marketed for ages 18-39 but this blog post from the official website says the cruise is perfect for people under 30: https://www.sail-croatia.com/set-sail/which-ship-type-is-right-for-me-a-navigator-guide Also got food poisoning from the boat so I had to miss an activity I wanted to go to although some activities were overpriced for what they were. For example, the buggying in Korcula cost 60 euros but involved a half an hour break where you just sat around doing nothing. The ziplining involved driving back the way you had just come by boat for 40-60 minutes and then having to wait to be driven all the way back afterwards so it takes up a lot of unnecessary time. Also the bike riding in Mljet is just a bike hire, literally no helmet or anything else so this was expensive for what it was too. On the first day the check in ended up being later (after 12 pm) and we missed the first day swim stop. Refund me.
- Anonymous, 10/07/2023 06:33, Travelled Solo
Thank you for sharing your feedback regarding your Sail Croatia experience. Regarding the age range on board we appreciate you bringing it to our attention. We have the correct age noted on our Navigator pages and will update the link provided. The activities offered are a highlight for many guests and we understand the frustration when activities do not meet expectations. Your feedback regarding the pricing has been noted, and we will pass it on to the appropriate department. In regards to food poisoning, upon checking our internal records I can see on the 3rd July you had notified the onboard representative that you were unwell the night before. The onboard representative assisted immediately and no further issues were reported hereafter. There were also no incidences relating to food poisoning onboard. Regarding the check-in time, we aim for a check-in from 10:30am. Any delays in the process will be communicated to our guests. Thank you for sharing your concerns, and we value your input. If you have any further questions or require additional assistance, please feel free to reach out to us.
I enjoyed my time but was it worth the amount of money I spent? No way, could’ve had a much better time spending less money doing something different. Obvious attempts to make extra profits left a sour taste. Drink prices on board were similar to a bar and lot’s of people found discrepancies between what they were charged and what they ordered. Nearly everyone just drank offshore towards the end of the cruise. The BBQ dinner was the most obvious sign of taking our cash. Charging us 25 Euro’s for a BBQ and offering no other alternative for dinner since we were out of port was shocking. Was just very average food so reckon it cost about 10 euro’s per person. Some other compulsory charges like the tourist tax should’ve just been included in the initial price anyway, if we 100% have to pay it then why exclude it from the initial price?
- Anonymous, 05/07/2023 07:57, Travelled Solo
Thank you for taking the time to leave us a review and provide us with feedback. It is great to hear you enjoyed your time onboard our Navigator cruise. We strive to ensure accurate and transparent billing for all our guests when it comes to the bar tab. You are also welcome to ask for a daily tally of your tab as one can easily lose track of what has been consumed during the week. Regarding the pricing, Croatia has only recently adopted Euros as a currency and we are going through a phase of adjusting the local pricing. We are sorry to hear you didn't find the BBQ to be of good value. Please rest assured your feedback has been passed to the Captain. All local tourist tax is payable locally rather than packaged in a price of the holiday. You will find this is a standard practice across the industry in various destinations and not just Croatia. Thank you again for your feedback and do come and see us again!
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 food on our boat was horrible. There was very little provided for breakfast (usually just bread with butter) and the included lunch was always extremely disappointing (usually soup with bread and some kind of boiled meat). We were all very hungry and there were no snacks provided during the day- we couldn’t bring our own snacks on board and we didn’t dock until the afternoon so there was no option to get off the boat to buy food. The rest of the tour was amazing and I would definitely do it again.
- Anonymous, 06/06/2023 07:46, Travelled Solo
Thank you for your 3 star review and for taking the time to provide feedback on your cruise with us this season. Your comments have now been passed onto the relevant teams and changes are already set in place so that improvements can be made. We thank you for bringing this to our attention and love to read you would join us again - we would love to have you! Thank you for a great week exploring Croatia with us.
I m vegetarian and I had a constant monotonous and unhealthy diet of eggs and cheese at each meal of the day. No vegetables, all cheap and badly cooked. To be fair. The ship crew were fine. The guides adequate. The hikes were not interesting bar one trip to a national part. Just uphill to a viewpoint. Every viewpoint and trail looked the same. The other guests were a good and lively bunch. Many felt the same but there was group pressure to say how great everything was.
- Eve, 05/09/2022 06:00, Travelled Solo
Thank you for your review here Eve. I'm happy to hear you found the ship crew and guides to be of good value. We are very sorry to hear of your disappointment with the meals served - upon checking the average ratings for your week onboard, the chef was rated 4 stars. Upon request, the chef would be more than happy to offer more of the foods you can eat as they are used to all kinds of dietary requirements. We value each piece of feedback provided and we encourage our guests to share their experience in their own words with no pressure, so we are disappointed to read this. It's reassuring to know that all guests would recommend our cruise and rated us overall 4-5 stars. We thank you for providing your review, as it is only with such comments we can look to improve our services wherever possible. Thank you
The boat was great and loved Croatia, however the problem was with the organisation and poor communication from staff. There were two trainee guides on board as well and they all clashed with each other. We were promised parties in the middle of the sea with a barbecue when in reality we had an early curfew and this didn’t go ahead at all. Early June was off season for most of the clubs so itinerary was not accurate at all. Swim stops were not communicated so I missed some of them. Croatian staff on board (bartender, captain, cook) were great though.
- Issy, 01/09/2022 07:03, Travelled Solo
Hi Issy, Thank you for your 5-star review. We are really pleased to hear you enjoyed your time on the boat and had a fabulous time in Croatia. However, we are sorry to hear you were disappointed with some aspects of your cruise. We pride ourselves on having the most knowledgable, friendly and local Representatives. Before the season commences, our Reps go through rigorous training and shadow work, so they are confident prior to their first departure solo. I have checked, and can see that the feedback for the Reps was 4-5 stars. On all our ships we have a midnight curfew which is to ensure those that wish to party on, can do so in the towns - visiting the best local bars and clubs, and those that wish to stay onboard and get an early night, can do so in peace. In early June, most bars and clubs are open to public however, we understand that Covid has caused a slight delay in opening times. Swim stops commence each day and the onboard rep will advise everyone of the daily schedule - I'm sorry to hear you missed some of them. Thank you for your comments on the onboard staff - we will pass this on :-). I'm pleased that overall you enjoyed your time on the boat and in Croatia as a whole.
The website is extremely hard to navigate. On day 1 of our cruise we were told to get off the boat after the meeting time because it wasn’t ready yet. This kind of disorganisation could have been avoided if you had a later meeting time. The price of excursions and drinks was pretty expensive and the fact that there wasn’t organised shuttles for a lot of stops was quite poor. There was a lot of hidden extras that added up. I definitely should have researched my ship more as it was way too party for me. I liked that breakfast and lunch was included everyday, however we didn’t get a lot of free time at most stops. Whilst I’m glad I did it I wouldn’t be doing another sail again. I think navigator is best suited to under 25 party goers. Also you shouldn’t ask people to review on the last day in front of their tour manager. It’s very awkward and not anonymous.
- Kieran, 22/08/2022 05:50, Travelled Solo
Hi Kieran, thank you for your review. We are continuously improving our customer experience by ensuring our website is easy to navigate. Check-in time onboard is from 10:30am - 12pm, however please note that your boat may not be ready by this time as mentioned in your pre-departure documentation. The boat left promptly at 1pm as scheduled. We do advise that dinners, drinks and excursions are at an additional cost so that you can budget for this, we have prices for drinks and excursions available. We're happy to know you enjoyed the inclusions of breakfasts and lunches. However, are sorry to hear this was too party orientated. Our Navigator cruises are aimed at under 39 year old travellers looking for a more party type cruise. Perhaps the Explorer cruise may be a better option as this has a good balance of socialising, relaxing and exploring. We encourage reviews and feedback to be provided privately, in your own words - we will be investigating further, thank you for making us aware. Thank you again for all your comments Kieran as this is the only way we can look to improve our services where possible. Thank you.
Great experience and people involved! Loved everything that was provided however paid extra to have an ensuite and be on top deck however the heat in my room was unbearable. It was right next to the engine room, the aircon faced away from the bed and didn’t provide any cooling effect. The bathroom was tiny and hot with the shower head facing the toilet. I didn’t sleep in the room at all and slept on the floor down below deck as the air con was much better down there. I would like to be compensated for the extra money I paid for an ensuite as the room was not liveable.
- Kate, 12/07/2022 19:20, Travelled Solo
Hi Kate - thank you for your review, we appreciate it. We are really happy to hear you had a great experienced and enjoyed the company of your fellow travellers. We have 4 ship types available; Standard, Ensuite, Premier and Premier Plus on our Navigator cruises. I can see that you booked an Ensuite ship which includes ensuite and a fan in your cabin. Air-conditioning is not included on our Ensuite ship, however we are pleased to hear your Captain turned this on in the communal areas downstairs free of charge. Having a look at the ratings for this room for previous departures, the feedback given was 5 stars for the previous two departures. I have confirmation from our Onboard Representative that the fan was in working order in your cabin. I would highly recommend our Premier or Premier Plus ship in future as this includes air-conditioning and more cabin space for added comfort. Thank you again for your feedback.
With a backdrop as beautiful as Croatia its hard to go wrong. Yet, this wasn't smooth sailing. Maybe it was the fact I had such high expectations from the glowing reviews that Sail Croatia gets, but the tour just felt extremely disorganised. We had a very lacklustre tour manager that did very little to hype up the mood and bring the group together. There was also A LOT of wasted time on the boat. SC markets these gorgeous daily swimspots; reality was not this with spots in random locations overlooking roads and deserted housing. We spent 4-5 hours each day anchored in the one spot rather than seeing the actually towns/islands marketed. The tipping point being the 'Day trip' to Mljet. We anchored near Mljet at 9am and didn't port at the park till close to 2pm, where we were then told to be back at the boat by 4pm. This left about an hour to explore! After completing many organised tours in the past, this definitely has turned me of organised tours in the future!
- Nick, 11/07/2022 06:32, Travelled Solo
Hi Nick, thank you for your review. We agree - Croatia is absolutely gorgeous and we are pleased you enjoyed your time. We pride ourselves on providing local guides that have a wealth of knowledge and are passionate about their country and culture. Having a look at the ratings for your Onboard Representative, he had received all 4-5 star ratings for your week, which includes organisation, friendliness and information. We appreciate your 4 and 5 star feedback rating and we are sorry to hear of your disappointment here. Our Captain chooses a variety of secluded bays to swim in, for the enjoyment of all guests. I understand that there were some issues with the anchor for one day in Mljet, and whilst this was being rectified, there were complimentary drinks provided and all guests were happy with the resolution. You remained in Mljet overnight until the next morning. We do hope that the issues experienced didn't detract from your overall enjoyment Nick. We do hope to have you join us again in the future.
The main thing I would change would be the tour guide. He was a very nice person but brought no energy or people skills to the group. Sometimes when we were asking him stuff it was like trying to draw blood from a stone. His answers were always “I don’t know I’ll ask the captain” lucky our group was very independent and we managed to find our own things to do and entertain ourselves. The aircon on the boat was very poor and j was disappointed at the boat crew handing us the review form on their iPad telling us we need to give them a 5 star review and then leaving an envelope in our rooms for tips. I had higher expectations as I heard a lot of good things and but it’s if I wasn’t b a problem
- Chris , 27/06/2022 01:54, Travelled Solo
Hi there Chris, thank you for your review. We hope you enjoyed your time in Croatia and got to immerse yourself in the country and culture. We are disappointed to read your comments regarding the Tour Guide, as we pride ourselves on having the best, local, friendly and knowledgeable Tour Guides onboard all our ships. Upon checking our feedback for this week, your rep received mostly 5 star reviews with 1x 4 star review. The boat you were on was Ensuite which doesn't include air-conditioning. It is at the Captain's discretion whether this is turned on, we are pleased he included this free of charge. We encourage our guests to provide us with their honest review and tipping is completely at guests discretion. ,We are disappointed to learn that you felt pressured to provide this - your comments will be passed on to the Operations Manager. Thank you again for all your comments, we hope this didn't detract from your overall experience in Croatia.
Explorer/Excursions: was disappointed by the lack of excursions and exploring on the explorer cruise. On board we did a lot of relaxing and cruising so I anticipated action packed land adventures. This trip fell flat. The 1 to 2 excursion I did I really enjoyed. Hora wine tasting (great local place with the sweetest donkeys) and biking in Mljet Meals: I am a pescatarian (no meat, only seafood). I was served seabream-4-5 lunches in a row. I mentioned to the guide I'd like more variety, the next lunch I again received seabream. After that I mentioned to the head crew member I'd like to eat something other than seabream. Then I finally I had a change to tuna. The next meal seabass. The guide also had dietary restrictions and made a huge fuss in front of our entire table when given something she didn't eat. My final meal aboard was back to seabream with a side of peppers; meanwhile the guide had a overwhelming portion of gnocchi and peppers.
- Melissa, 04/10/2021 17:02, Travelled Solo
Hi Melissa, Thank you for your review. It's great to hear you enjoyed the Korcula Village Dinner, Wine Tasting and cycling around Mljet National Park. We agree, these are fantastic excursions and we love the Hora wine (and donkey's) also. It's nice to see from your feedback provided, you enjoyed your breakfasts onboard, rating this 4 stars, although not our usual 5 star service, we are glad you enjoyed the meals served each morning and we appreciate the fact that you would recommend us to others, thank you. Our onboard chef's aim to prepare delicious meals, using fresh, local produce, catering to all tastes, however at times, we understand that this is not always possible. Sea bream is a highly valued species of Adriatic white fish which would have been skill-fully prepared for you, especially as you had advised us of your dietary requirements. In saying this, we are sorry to hear that this became quite repetitive throughout the week. We have mentioned this to the onboard chef so that they are aware. We hope that this aspect didn't deter from your overall experience and we thank you for joining us this summer!
I came on Sail Croatia alone which was fine since I met tons of nice new friends on the cruise. My issue was with our guide. He was very unenthusiastic the whole time, made sexist comments, and generally made me feel uncomfortable as a solo passenger by making rude comments. I have good things to say about the boat, the captain, and his crew as the boat was always in good condition, and we safely got everywhere we were going, however the bartender was another story. Although he freepoured the drinks, he was unpredictible in his attitude, sometimes being happy and friendly, and sometimes getting angry with passengers for ordering certain drinks or ordering lots of drinks. This made me feel uncomfortable going to the bar to order drinks. Finally, since the whole crew was male and our guide was male, I felt disadvantaged on the boat as a solo woman, since they were all more friendly with the male passengers. Overall, a more friendly, enthusiastic guide would have improved my experience.
- Anonymous, 07/10/2019 14:03, Travelled Solo
Hi there and thank you for your review. We are pleased to hear you enjoyed the company of your fellow travellers and found the captain and crew helpful, and boat to be in good condition, thank you. I can see that we had 20 females and 16 males onboard your cruise, with 5 solo travellers. We are family owned and each of the ships we work with are also family-owned and operated. Together we make up Sail Croatia. Although our Reps are employed and trained by Sail Croatia, our ships and their captains are in charge of employing their own crew, ensuring their staff maintain a high level of service throughout the cruise. We are disappointed to read your comments regarding the guide and bartender. We have passed these comments on to the appropriate departments to provide further support and training where required. We are sorry to hear you felt uncomfortable, we encourage guests to notify our Operations Manager for any issues that may arise onboard so that we can resolve them immediately. We hope that overall, you enjoyed most aspects of your cruise and Croatia as a whole. Thank you.
The boat. Outdated, cramped, badly ventilated in the downstairs cabin. Cupboard space inadequate for two people as there was no shelving. Dining room space just coped. Crockery inadequate with just one cup per person and some had chips out. Insufficient glasses for morning juice. Breakfast was a race as there limited yogurts, fruit drinks, poor choice of cereal, very poor coffee, real milk not always available. Main leader was disorganised speaking before all holiday members were there so it became. Chinese’s whispers to find information. Meeting times announced were not kept to by leader and he would start early. Boat left port before announced times. I could go on.
- Colin, 23/09/2019 05:29, Travelled Solo
Hi there and thank you for your review. We are really sorry to hear you were disappointed with your accommodation for the week. Our lovely Tuna crew are highly experienced, completing numerous Cycle cruises over several years and I understand that our crew and representative did everything possible to ensure all guests were comfortable and enjoying their cruise experience so we are disappointed to read your comments here. In regards to breakfasts, additional supplies can of course be provided upon request, also we are sorry to hear that the crockery was not of standard - we will pass this on to our relevant departments, thank you.
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.
Before booking my tour I asked to be put in a boat with solo travellers, as I myself was travelling solo and they said it would not be a problem. To my surprise I got put in a boat with couples and and people who knew each other. Careful going on the smaller boat because you might be stuck with people who are close and will be hard to make friends.
- Fatah, 02/08/2019 09:11, Travelled Solo
Hi there. Many thanks for your review. I'm sorry to hear of your disappointment of the tour. I have looked through previous correspondence and can see you were advised we only had availability on our Under 35s Yacht Tours for your requested departure date, so we did not have any other options available for you at the time, I'm afraid. Our Under 35s Yacht Tours consist of a group of usually 6 to 8 yachts sleeping 8 passengers on each sailing together in a flotilla, so it usually a very social experience. I checked and can see your departure had 47 guests across 6 yachts to enjoy the social experience on board. Thank you for joining us this season :)
Staff were incredible, but to many issues happened on the boat. Generator was down for days, the chef cut his leg open and was unable to cook. Amongst a lot of other issues.
- Anonymous, 11/07/2019 10:00, Travelled Solo
Hi there and thank you for your review. We are really pleased to hear that the staff were incredible and we are glad to see your 5-star feedback rating on all aspects of the cruise, thank you! We understand that there were a few issues onboard which were immediately resolved by the crew. Thus being the generator being down for 24 hours, and I understand all guests enjoyed a free BBQ onboard for the inconvenience. The chef was unable to cook mid-way through the cruise due to the his injuries however, was still involved in the food preparation. Thank you.
I would like to send an email to fully explain my thoughts, however there were a number of events that detracted from my experience. Please note that the crew Bruno, Boris, Hichela, Marko, Karlo and Mate were fantastic in their efforts to solve the issues, and were extremely professional and dedicated to their jobs. When Mate injured his foot, the remainder of the crew were forced to cook, meaning the food quality decreased slightly (not their fault - they’re not chefs) and they couldn’t focus on their primary role. I was disappointed that Sail Croatia did not send a replacement chef or waitress to help. Secondly was a power issue cause by operator error, but again, I saw this as Sail Croatia’s mistake in not correctly training their crews or familiarising them with the ship. I still had a fantastic week (because of the crew and locations) but was disappointed with the lack of support from your company. Our crew were fantastic, but your company could use some improvement.
- Guy, 08/07/2019 09:53, Travelled Solo
Thank you for your review and your email with additional comments, this is appreciated. We are pleased to hear that the crew and your representative were fantastic with their efforts and were professional at all times. However, we are sorry to hear of your disappointment with some aspects. I have spoken with the representative Boris and he has confirmed that on day 3 of your cruise, chef Mate was unable to continue his role as head chef due to injuries. Given that it was such short notice, the captain was unable to obtain a chef replacement. However, the Captain then stepped in to resume this role with the chef assisting with the food preparation for the remainder of the cruise. I've had a look at the issues regarding the generator onboard and can see that this has been recorded via our internal records. I understand that the generator was down for 24 hours and that all guests received a free BBQ onboard due to this human error made by one of the crew, which has been followed up. We hope that these issues didn't detract from your overall experience, and we thank you again for bringing this to our attention via email, so that we could address them directly with you.
The boat and crew were fantastic, but unfortunately I was quite disappointed with the age group of travellers on board. There were a large number of older travellers when I was hoping to mix and mingle with travellers around the same age in the 20-40 age group. The trip is marked for couples, young professionals, young at heart. Unfortunately there were too many 'young at heart' and couples on board for my liking. I would recommend doing a Navigator cruise instead with a Premier boat. On the plus side our guide Ivana was amazing and we had a Sail Croatia photographer with us for the week (still waiting for the pictures though which are overdue),
- Anonymous, 18/09/2018 02:02, Travelled Solo
Thank you for your review. We’re so glad to hear that overall you had a wonderful time onboard your Explorer Cruise, and that you were well looked after by the crew and your Tour Manager. We’re sorry to hear that the age range onboard didn’t meet your expectations. Our Explorer Cruises are perfect for travellers that wish to explore, socialise and experience Croatia at its finest, and we often find a mix of couples, young professionals and young at heart travellers onboard. Please keep an eye on the Sail Croatia Facebook page, where all images from the 2018 season will be published.
Went on the Navigator North trip with the Tarin boat. We had no overnight power for 2-3 days when docked in port, therefore our fans in the room did not work in the intense heat, People resorted to sleeping on the roof as the cabins were unbearably hot. We also couldn't charge our mobile phones in order to take pictures the next day, set alarms, etc. Our water dispenser was taken off the boat a day before the cruise ended because the boat was going to be used by another company the following day. The whole boat vibrated when moving, making sleep in the morning extremely difficult. Eggs were not provided for breakfast every day. In fact the were on a random scheduled according to how the chef felt. One day I woke up for breakfast only to be told the eggs had already finished.. The next day I woke up earlier and was told eggs were only made every second day and not daily. On the plus side we did visit some pretty cool places and met some amazing people. Tarin and Ivanna were great!
- Anonymous, 18/09/2018 01:55, Travelled Solo
Thank you for taking the time to provide us with your review! It is great to hear you that you enjoyed the destinations visited on your Navigator Cruise, and that your Tour Manager and the crew onboard Tarin ensured you had a great week onboard. Cooked breakfast isn’t provided on our Navigator cruises as an inclusion and we are very pleased to hear you had enjoyed a hot breakfast on certain days throughout the week. I have checked our internal reporting system and unfortunately I was unable to find any reports of feedback referencing the fans and water dispenser onboard. Had your onboard Tour Manager been made aware of your concerns, we would have been more than happy to resolve these issues whilst you were on the cruise. Thank you again for your feedback, as only through this feedback, can we improve our products and services.
Booking process should show availability. You select a cruise that you want and it shows as available only to get an email shortly after that that boat/cabin is not available. I booked late, under the impression that there were heaps of spots remaining as the website said so only to end up in the worst room on the worst boat. No big deal in the end but annoying. Zero attempt by Sail staff to get everyone introduced together. Unfortunate weather meant we had to divert first night, no ones fault. Swim stops were few and far between, other ships seemed to have a lot more in better locations. missed the second last stop because of weather and went straight to dubrovnik. Weather was blue skies and no wind, I heard its because the boats don\'t want to pay docking fees. Staff very friendly. Food was actually good on boat, recommended restaurants were awful. Drinks wayyy to expensive, should be on par with mainland $5 AUD for a beer is a bit much for young people. Still fun.
- Marcus, 13/09/2016 05:19, Travelled Solo
Hi there, thank you for your review regarding your Navigator Split to Dubrovnik cruise.It is great to hear that you found the crew friendly, you enjoyed the food on-board and that you had fun on your cruise. In regards to availability of our cruises, our prices don't reflect availability and this is noted under the pricing grid for each cruise. We prefer to speak with our customers and we feel by doing so, adds value to their experience with us, and enables us to assist them in finding the best suited cruise for them. In the case of bad weather, or even the chance of bad weather, the Captain may have to alter the itinerary and will visit a different island and port, to ensure the guests are safe yet still get to experience Croatia. I can assure you this has nothing to do with avoiding port fees as pricing is similar at all ports. At the time of docking, the weather may seem to be perfect however, in the early hours this can change drastically 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. In regards to the swim stops, when possible, the Captain will stop to give guests a chance to swim, however this depends on the weather and the scheduling of the ship. I am sorry that this wasn't communicated clearly to you when on-board. In regards to the drinks prices, these do vary and range from 1.96EUR ($2.60AUD) to 2.60EUR ($3.50AUD). Thank you again for taking the timing to let us know about your experience.
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.
The room that I got was on the ensuite boat downstairs. Unbearable. Was so so hot down there, get no breeze through the hallway door, and when I opened the outside window a wave came in soaking my bed and ruining my phone. If your going to have rooms like this you need to make sure that the aircon on the boat works and if it doesn't work, get it fixed. I got really sick from this week due to lack of sleep and sleep in a saltwater soaked bed. Food was good, crew was good, activity options were good
- Nathan, 10/08/2016 04:32, Travelled Solo
Hi there and thanks for your feedback. We are pleased to hear the food on-board was good as well as the optional activities and crew - we will pass your comments on to them. In regards to the Lower Deck cabins, at times the rooms can become hotter during peak months. We advise, when safe, to open your port hole for ventilation whilst you are in your cabin to let air-flow through. As you booked an Ensuite Lower Deck cabin, we provide a fan in each of our Ensuite cabins as air-conditioning is not included on this boat type, (it is included on our Premier and Premier Plus boats). We are sorry to hear about the soaked bed. We have rigorous procedures in place for any issues that arise on-board our cruises, which is included in the pre-departure information emailed to you before the cruise and is outlined at the welcome speech. The first step is to communicate with the crew. If this does not resolve the issue, the second step is to contact our representative in which case we log this in our central reporting and manage the issue onboard until it is fully resolved and customers are happy. We also supply the contact details for our Operations Manager and Managing Director in the unlikely event you are disatisfied with any response from our team members. This procedure does then give us the opportunity to resolve an issue during the trip and follow up or check historical issues.I have searched our records and cannot see that you had reported this to a member of staff. Had this been reported, we would have rectified the bedding situation immediately. We are happy that you had a good trip overall and thank you for providing feedback.
Had a great time, however, the ratio of girls to guys was way too unbalanced on our boat, we were 28 girls and 5 guys, where 14 of those girls came as a group and kept to themselves most of the time. This limited group socialising. And then hearing about other boats who were having so much more fun as their group socialised more. Was a great cruise, make some cool friends nonetheless.
- Mary, 01/08/2016 21:12, Travelled Solo
Thank you for your feedback on our Navigator Dubrovnik to Split cruise. It's great to hear you had a good time on this cruise and made some new friends. We always aim to get a good balance on-board all our boats taking into consideration age, gender, nationality, group makeup - friends, solo travellers and couples. However, at times this is not possible as it heavily depends on who has booked what boat. We would like all our guests to socialise with other groups on-board, but it is down to the individual. In saying this, we had several boats on this route which hopefully provided you with a more sociable atmosphere in being able to mingle with travellers from other boats. Thanks again for your feedback.
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- Katharine, 30/06/2016 09:07, Travelled Solo