PortMiami was aglow yesterday evening during an intimate christening celebration of Windstar Cruises’ first newbuild for its Star class—the Star Seeker.
VIPs, including Star Seeker’s very own godmother, Libby Anschutz—daughter of Windstar’s owner Phil Anschutz—crew, passengers and media were in attendance to celebrate this new chapter for Windstar. The celebration included the ceremonial breaking of a champagne bottle against the hull and poignant messages from Star Seeker Captain Tom Schofield, Windstar President Chris Prelog and Godmother Libby Anschutz, topped off with a fireworks show set against Miami’s stunning skyline and the beautiful new yacht.
After the ceremony, the 224-guest Star Seeker set off on its christening sailing from Miami to San Juan, with stops in the Dominican Republic and the BVI. Before the ship sailed off into the moonlit sea, though, we had a chance to chat with Windstar executives, including John Gunner, Windstar’s VP of Expansion Projects, who told us that they wanted to make the 112-accommodation Star Seeker “a progression from our fleet. We didn’t want to make a major change. You’re probably aware we took this ship from Mystic, so we basically converted the ship. We needed to apply the iconic items that we have on our existing ships, including the Yacht Club,” which offers 270-degree views.
“We needed to open up some deck space,” he continues, “and we needed to make arrangements for our iconic barbecue. The original ship had a helicopter platform, so we took all that away. They had their inflatable boats on deck eight, so we took all that away and we built cabins on deck seven aft, [with] 20 extra cabins…. And we made those very high-end cabins, including the two Horizon Owner’s Suites,” with wraparound balconies. “So, I think it’s a progression. I’m very proud of the way the ship turned out,” he adds.
The ship offers five dining venues, including the line’s newest specialty venue, Basil + Bamboo, offering a Med-Asian menu. On the Star Seeker, Amphora will be open for breakfast, lunch and dinner, with buffet offered during the day and a la carte come evening. There’s also the delightful Main Lounge and the aforementioned Yacht Club, where passengers can get their coffee fix accompanied by small bites during the day and as the sun falls, mingle with other passengers with cocktail in hand. Add a marina with direct ocean access, an intimate spa, a well-appointed gym with wide windows that offer amazing views of the surroundings, a pool and a hot tub, and the grill area, and you’ve got all the elements that clients looking for a small ship, yacht-style sailing are looking for.
“I certainly believe that given the progression of the cruise industry as a whole, which is moving to bigger and bigger ships…. I think there is a demographic that says I’d rather be in a less crowded environment…. Windstar is selling a very personal experience. Our crew gets to know the guests very quickly and they get to know their names. It’s a very personal experience. That’s something you can’t do on a big ship. If you come on a ship like this, you’re seeing smaller ports such as little-known Italian coastal ports…things like that.”
Demand is Strong for the Small Ship Experience
With Star Seeker’s christening sailing nearly sold out, we asked Janet Bava, Windstar’s Chief Commercial Officer, about strong demand for the Windstar product, and she informed us that “actually, the entire season of the Star Seeker is nearly sold out. We have some open sailing in Southeast Asia and the Transocean, and Costa Rica, but the response we’ve received is amazing. The first sailing out of the gate exceeded guest expectations.”
The ship, she notes, will sail the Caribbean, then reposition in Costa Rica, then head over, through the Panama Canal, to Seattle, then she’ll start her summer season in Alaska. In Costa Rica, says Bava, “we’ll do some wet landings, as we have kayaks. So, it’s unique; you’ll feel like you’re in a yacht.” After Alaska, Star Seeker will head to Japan and Southeast Asia.
Bava reminds travel advisors that there are “cruises for everyone,” noting that advisors need to tell their “cruise skeptics” that “you can have a different experience on board a ship—unpack once and visit multiple destinations, which is a key driver of cruising, and you can do it in an intimate way. You don’t wait in line; you have exquisite cuisine on board; you feel like you’re in a private yacht. The quality and the value are just exceptional.
“At Windstar we have an opportunity to introduce people to cruising that are cruise skeptics and to convert mass market cruisers into small ship cruising.”
When it comes to Windstar’s value proposition for travel advisors selling intimate, immersive cruise vacations, Bava says that travel advisors want “repeat clients because the hardest thing for travel advisors is to introduce a brand to their clients, so it’s very important for us that when travel advisors trust us and they bring their clients on board, that they have an exceptional time so that clients will keep coming back for more.”
Star Explorer, sister ship to Star Seeker, is set to make her debut this December, and Bava notes that Explorer is going to be able to attract those travel advisors who are selling river cruises. “They’re running out of river cruises to sell to their clients, but now they can attract those clients who are the same demographic into a small ship experience with the same amount of active destination immersion.”
Explorer will be sailing into river ports and city-centers like London on the Thames, Bordeaux, Rouen and Caen, and will offer longer stays and overnights in destinations such as Stockholm, Tallinn, Bordeaux, San Sebastian and Biarritz, plus Windstar firsts like Puerto Banus, the marina gateway to Marbella. She’ll also explore the British Isles, Ireland, the Baltics, Norway’s fjords, France, Northern Spain and Portugal.
These ships, Bava says in conclusion, are “floating hotels.”
