Barefoot Island Cruise on WindSurf March 2013~ Questions

I recently found out about a special cruise for March 2013 called Barefoot Island Cruise. It is Jimmy Buffett themed and has a interesting itinerary. We were thinking about booking it however we have never sailed on such a small ship or from anywhere other that Florida.

I have looked over the forum and can't seem to find any pictures from previous sailings on the WindSurf (food, cabin, etc). Can some post a link?

Also I am intimidated by the whole experience, flying to St. Maarten, getting on a smaller ship, small cabins,how's the food and is there a pool?

At the same time we have always wanted to visit all of these islands and it seems like a fun way to do it, it is like a dream come true but these other concerns have me rethinking it? Am I being a nervous nelly?:confused:

Thanks for your input,

kim

I recently found out about a special cruise for March 2013 called Barefoot Island Cruise. It is Jimmy Buffett themed and has a interesting itinerary. We were thinking about booking it however we have never sailed on such a small ship or from anywhere other that Florida.

I looked up this cruise. I am surprised this is still offered on Windstar's webpage. It's way more expensive if you book through this charter company instead of directly through Windstar. This company is charging you $2099 for a category B cabin, but Windstar will charge you only $1499, and there may be additional discounts on top of that. If you book for the sailing the week before (March 3, 2013) the price is even lower; $1399 per person.

Personally, if I was interested in this ship and itinerary, I would skip this cruise and book a different sailing. I am not sure what you get on this charter that is special except a band playing JB music. Jimmy Buffett has nothing to do with it personally.

I have looked over the forum and can't seem to find any pictures from previous sailings on the WindSurf (food, cabin, etc). Can some post a link?

We aren't allowed to post a link to a specific online TA, but if you go to this charter webpage, click on "gallery" and it has many pictures, as does Windstar's own webpage. They aren't hard to find.

Am I being a nervous nelly?

I am not sure what you are nervous about, except possibly overpaying for a cruise you could book at a much lower cost.

6rugrats,

I looked on Wind Star as well and the March 13, 2013 date is not listed as a sailing so the company offering this cruise is doing a special charter. I realized it is more, and yes there is Jimmy Buffett style music on board. Also, I am aware Jimmy Buffett has nothing to do with the cruise. The itinerary is going to islands mentioned in his songs and is a bit different that the usual St. Martin to St. Martin cruise.

I am nervous about a small ship. Also I don't know alot about Wind Star so I was hoping for some expert advise regarding sailing on a smaller ship vs. the large ships. As a Floridian, I have never flown into a port to board a ship. That is a whole new experience so us so I was looking for some advise with that as well.

As far as a link, alot of times people post links to threads that may include pictures of food and cabins. I read a few reviews from the Caribbean sailing on the Wind Surf but haven't come across any very detailed.

thanks- kim

If this is the cruise your talking about, it shows the dates of March 16-23, 2013. Windstar shows the cruise here as one of their itineraries. Yes, the prices are lower through Windstar. You could try calling Windstar directly and questioning them. It's possible that the "group" promoting the cruise only reserved a portion of the Wind Surf and did not charter the entire vessel. If so, you would get the same cruise at a lower price by booking directly with Windstar.

As far as sailing on a smaller ship - it's absolutely great. Much more casual and definitely more personal. After several trips with Windstar, I don't think we'll ever be able to travel on a large cruise ship again.

I haven't seen an recent pictures of the Wind Surf. All the cabins have been refurbished. If you go to Windstar's website you can find renderings of the "new" cabins in their blog which can be found by clicking on the blog tab in the upper right of the main page. Most of the photos on the website have not been updated yet, but if you browse through those it will give you a feel for the Wind Surf. I haven't sailed the Wind Surf yet - wish I could help you more.

If this is the cruise your talking about, it shows the dates of March 16-23, 2013. Windstar shows the cruise here as one of their itineraries. Yes, the prices are lower through Windstar. You could try calling Windstar directly and questioning them. It's possible that the "group" promoting the cruise only reserved a portion of the Wind Surf and did not charter the entire vessel. If so, you would get the same cruise at a lower price by booking directly with Windstar.

 

This company states they have chartered the entire ship. If so, there are going to be some very unhappy cruisers who will soon be receiving phone calls cancelling their cruise.

Agree, this cruise still shows up on Windstar's webpage. The sailing before this charter doesn't even get back until 17 March, so I'm not sure why this other company states their cruise dates start 16 March.

I remain confused as to why Windstar still lists this cruise on their webpage, when this company states they are chartering the entire ship.

This exclusive full ship charter of the 312 passenger motor-sailing ship Wind Surf of Windstar Cruise Lines will have us island hopping the best of the Caribbean...