A brand new cruise company is about to market sailings on board the world’s largest sailing ship
Beginning in the Spring of 2021, the newly created Tradewind Voyages will offer sailings aboard Golden Horizon, a 272 passenger five-masted barque.
The vessel originally commissioned by Star Clipper Lines as Flying Clipper is to a design inspired by the France II, built by Chantiers et Ateliers de la Gironde in 1913.
Built in Split by the Croatian shipyard Brodosplit, she became Golden Horizon when the shipyard took over full ownership of the incomplete vessel when negociations between builder and owner faltered.
Brodosplit will still own the square-rigger and will be, chartered to the new UK based cruise line operator led by Stuart McQuaker, a former Royal Navy officer who later became the chief operating officer for Saga Cruises.
With a sail area of over 6,300 square metres of sail, she carries more than twice the sail area of the clipper ship Cutty Sark ever did.
Nine UK cruises
Initially, the ship will offer seven voyages from Harwich in East Anglia followed by two more from Glasgow. Later a round-Britain voyage will see her call at the Scilly Isles, the Channel Islands and will include a stop off Cowes in the Isle of Wight for the traditional end of regatta firework display.
Other sailings in European waters will include visits to Denmark, Iceland, the Norwegian fjords and the Baltics republics with round-trips to St Petersburg and up to Svalbard.
Taking advantage of the prevailing winds and currents that were a feature traditional trading routes of years gone by, Golden Horizon will set sail eastwards in September 2021. She will sail into the Mediterranean making a stopover in Croatia where the DIV Group who own the ship are based. She will then pass through the Suez Canal as she follows the Sailing Ship Silk Route to Indonesia with stopovers in Jakarta and Bali.
In late 2021 and into 2022 the planed voyages will feature Australia, the Indian Ocean, Japan, Alaska, the Americas, and the Pacific Islands.
Primarily a sailing ship with auxiliary engines Golden Horizon is 162 metres overall and carries a beam of 18.5 metres. Her gross tonnage has been reported as 8,700gt and her 272 passenger capacity will be serviced by a crew of 159
Voyages in late 2021 and into 2022 will feature Australia, the Indian Ocean, Japan, Alaska, the Americas and the Pacific Islands.
English-speaking sourcing
The ships start up operators have announced their management team and here, names include: Jeremy McKenna who has been appointed sales and marketing director, Amanda Norey as head of marketing and distribution and Oliver Hammerer as Product Director. All have held key positions in UK-based cruise and cruise retail companies in the past. The ships managers have yet to be appointed. Those managers will supply crews for the deck and engine and hotel departments.
Targeted primarily to those in the UK and inside other English-speaking markets, the ship will feature an on board al fresco bar as well as a main dining room, plus watersports facilities. Families will be welcome on board, but given the programme is not designed to cater to the very young there will be no children’s activities or events organised for youngsters.
Instead there will be a programme of sophisticated enrichment and wellbeing and, for those who wish, the opportunity to take advantage of various complementary water sports available from its marina. The main dining room will have capacity to seat all passengers at one time for lunch and evening dinner with sittings spread across several hours.
While Golden Horizon has the engine capacity to motor across oceans the intent is for the vessel to be under canvas whenever possible, particularly on the longer routes with the aim of completing at least 70% of each season under sail.
Tradewind Voyages plans to expand its fleet of sailing ships over the coming years, with a design process under way.