Wayfairers Posted August 3, 2017 #1 Share Posted August 3, 2017 I've seen a Windstar ship in port that had sails - do the ships ever cut the engines and sail under only wind power? Sent from my iPad using Forums Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sb44 Posted August 3, 2017 #2 Share Posted August 3, 2017 Always. At the end of each cruise they have a talley of the hours under sail. It's beautiful at night under sail and one if the reasons we keep going back for more. Sent from my SM-G920V using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare texasstar Posted August 4, 2017 #3 Share Posted August 4, 2017 Not always. It depends on the weather and the condition of the sails. We were on the Surf in May, and the only time some of the sails were up was when we left port. We were told the sails were due to be replaced and they could not raise all of them because of this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Strenz Posted August 4, 2017 #4 Share Posted August 4, 2017 When they are fully under sail, it is magical. People are so respectful they whisper for it is the sounds of the sea that resonate with us and the reason we come back again and again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dandee2 Posted August 4, 2017 #5 Share Posted August 4, 2017 Yes they sail. Not always as it depend on wind direction, current and location. They add about 2-3 knots.. sometime, as our last cruise in Tahiti, they would raised them for sail away but stowed them later in the evening. Islands are close and there is no point having them up at night. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sb44 Posted August 4, 2017 #6 Share Posted August 4, 2017 Not always. It depends on the weather and the condition of the sails. We were on the Surf in May, and the only time some of the sails were up was when we left port. We were told the sails were due to be replaced and they could not raise all of them because of this. That's too bad. We were on in June and under sail pretty much every day. They were gorgeous. Yes it depends on weather but we've never been on board when sails weren't up. Sent from my SM-G920V using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wayfairers Posted August 4, 2017 Author #7 Share Posted August 4, 2017 Great info, thanks! We love the feeling of being fully under sail on a smaller boat (around 30ft boat) - I would imagine just like flying in a small vs large plane is different that sailing in a larger boat would be different too. Sounds like you still get that wonderful feeling though. Sent from my iPad using Forums Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
milepig Posted August 4, 2017 #8 Share Posted August 4, 2017 The sad thing is that the people on board never get to see the full effect. The closest we came was when both the Spirit and the Star were in Rhodes the same day and we sailed out together. We just stood by the rail gawking and saying "OMG, this is what WE look like." One of life's most memorable moments. The captains showed off a bit as we first circled each other a couple times and then left port one behind the other, one toward Turkey and the other headed West. Magical. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Strenz Posted August 4, 2017 #9 Share Posted August 4, 2017 That is true for anyone sailing. We saw that tandem sailing of the WS ships three times: the Greece Cruise, long time ago in the Caribbean and once with the Surf and the sister ship the Club Med 2 ( either one or two ? ) Beautiful. For us it is the silence of sailing that we love when they cut the motors. When we took the trans Pacific to Tahiti a few years ago, we had so much time the last two days at sea were completely under sail. That was great! Even if you get a few hours it is still magical. Happy Sailing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
6rugrats Posted August 5, 2017 #10 Share Posted August 5, 2017 When they are fully under sail, it is magical. People are so respectful they whisper for it is the sounds of the sea that resonate with us and the reason we come back again and again. Can't say that I've ever noticed this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Strenz Posted August 6, 2017 #11 Share Posted August 6, 2017 That is too bad because we have been on 20 cruises with WS and whenever the motors are off people either stop talking or whisper. Quite lovely and respectful. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sb44 Posted August 6, 2017 #12 Share Posted August 6, 2017 That is too bad because we have been on 20 cruises with WS and whenever the motors are off people either stop talking or whisper. Quite lovely and respectful. Yes it certainly is lovely and so quiet. Sent from my SM-G920V using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FredT Posted August 8, 2017 #13 Share Posted August 8, 2017 That is too bad because we have been on 20 cruises with WS and whenever the motors are off people either stop talking or whisper. Quite lovely and respectful. BUT... Are the engines EVER off? A ship such as this requires one heck of a lot of power to run the "hotel"... That requires an engine to run the generators at least as large as one of the propulsion engines... right? If the OP is fixated on sailing "under sail" maybe check Star Clippers? THATS pure sail...... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sb44 Posted August 8, 2017 #14 Share Posted August 8, 2017 BUT... Are the engines EVER off? A ship such as this requires one heck of a lot of power to run the "hotel"... That requires an engine to run the generators at least as large as one of the propulsion engines... right? If the OP is fixated on sailing "under sail" maybe check Star Clippers? THATS pure sail...... True. They have to run some power for lights, etc. But it's lovely and quiet. And accomodations and food better on WS. A matter of personal taste. Clippers have a more international group and, from meeting people in ports when in at the same time, more of a party crowd. The two are quite different IMHO. Sent from my SM-G920V using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Strenz Posted August 8, 2017 #15 Share Posted August 8, 2017 I was referring to motors. Yes, generators are on all the time but the noise is a hum. When the motors are off you hear the wind and water the hum disappears with the noise of the sea. When the engines are on you hear/feel a vibration. Hard to explain. There is a big difference. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dandee2 Posted August 8, 2017 #16 Share Posted August 8, 2017 The propeller are electrically driven. Of course, you need a Diesel engine to run its generator. Sent from my iPad using Forums Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FredT Posted August 8, 2017 #17 Share Posted August 8, 2017 I was referring to motors. Yes, generators are on all the time but the noise is a hum. When the motors are off you hear the wind and water the hum disappears with the noise of the sea. When the engines are on you hear/feel a vibration. Hard to explain. There is a big difference. The Wind Star has e identical diesel engines that produce ALL of the power for the ship, (Including the power to run the propeller) Rarely are more than 2 in use at one time, but NEVER are all three shut off. That information straight from the head engineer on board, and verified just now on NedCruise Info website. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FredT Posted August 8, 2017 #18 Share Posted August 8, 2017 True. They have to run some power for lights, etc. But it's lovely and quiet. And accomodations and food better on WS. A matter of personal taste. Clippers have a more international group and, from meeting people in ports when in at the same time, more of a party crowd. The two are quite different IMHO. Sent from my SM-G920V using Tapatalk While I agree with most of your post... the part that reads "more of a party crowd" has me stumped. Star Clippers does NOT have any sort of party crowd... At least as far as I have ever seen. In fact it's age and demographics just about mirrors Windstar, except for the nationality issue and the fact that most of the repeat passengers are "sailing" people... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sb44 Posted August 8, 2017 #19 Share Posted August 8, 2017 While I agree with most of your post... the part that reads "more of a party crowd" has me stumped. Star Clippers does NOT have any sort of party crowd... At least as far as I have ever seen. In fact it's age and demographics just about mirrors Windstar, except for the nationality issue and the fact that most of the repeat passengers are "sailing" people... People we met along the way in the islands were younger and having themselves a good time. Good for them! We certainly did on the old Windjammers. Just my observation, nothing more. Ran into Clipper in Europe too and seemed a different crowd. Sea Dream cruisers we've met appear a bit older. Again, just personal observations. No offense meant which is why I said IMHO. Sent from my SM-G920V using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dandee2 Posted August 8, 2017 #20 Share Posted August 8, 2017 I'm sure no offence was taken by nobody. This is a forum, with numerous nationality and mother tongue. We ( me included) are sometime awkward behind a keyboard, even more so behind a phone. Nothing beats face to face conversation. Cheers to all and happy sailing to all :-) Sent from my iPad using Forums Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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