Windjammers – More Barefoot than Cruising?

by Sail-World Cruising on 20 Nov 2007 Windjammer Barefoot Cruises, for more than 50 years providing tall ship holidays, is giving every indication of being in severe financial trouble.

Cruises on November 10, 17, 24 and December 1 on their tall ships have been canceled, but they are saying that the December 8 departure is still going. Corporate watchers are, however, dubious.

Windjammer's troubles seem to stem back to the loss of one of their ships, the Fantome, in Hurricane Mitch in 1998, which claimed a total of 9,000 lives in the region. 31 crew lives were lost on the Fantome itself, the passengers having been let off prior to the hurricane.

Lawsuits have dogged the company since, and the ship, as was their habit, was not insured. The tall ship company, which is a family affair, has also been experiencing sharp and growing competition from the traditional cruise line recently.

What is a Windjammer?

The windjammer was a type of sailing ship with a large iron or steel hull, built to carry cargo in the late nineteenth century and early twentieth century centuries. They were the grandest of cargo sailing ships, with between three and five large masts and square sails, giving them a characteristic profile.

They frequently displaced several thousand tons, and were cheaper than their wooden hulled counterparts for three main reasons: iron was stronger, and thus could enable larger ship sizes and considerable economies of scale, iron hulls took up less space and allowed for more cargo to be carried, and iron hulls were cheaper to maintain than an equivalent wooden hull.

It was these old ships, strong and, when adapted, highly suitable for giving modern sailors the experience of sailing on a tall ship, that have been the strength of Windjammer Barefoot Sailing for half a century. Regardless of the story of this company, it would be a sad demise if this sort of sailing experience was no longer available in the Caribbean.