I went on a week- long tall ship , Feb 2016, departed Tenerife, itinerary indicated going to La Gomera, advertised as 'luxury' 'calm, relaxing' ,'ship does not sail on choppy waters', 'ship does not go in high winds, also 'no experience necessary' .
We sailed through the night Feb 24th from La Gomera to El Hierro, not on itinerary, high seas, Atlantic swell, no sleep, thrashed our way through the high seas, my cabin, and many contents soaked, all bedding etc , when the ship eventually calmed at 4.30 a.m. in El Hierro.
Let me warn potential customers, do NOT attempt this type of trip. They say the open Atlantic can be very rough, well I know, as I witnessed it. The crew/owners/ Travel company are one and same person. Will not admit to any negligence, or any upset caused. I am supposed to put it all down to a bad choice of trip!!!???It came with no warnings, no small print, no advice, it also was sold at 50% off, so the old adage is true, 'If a thing seems too good to be true, it probably is'. I want others to read this, it could save your life. Roisin White
Posted by
San Leandro, CA, USA
518 posts
Sounds terrible, thanks for the warning.
Posted by
Northamptonshire, England
32706 posts
How did everything in your cabin get soaked? Did you leave the porthole open?
Posted by
OP
3 posts
Hello Nigel, I was not aware of any hole, porthole, window etc in my cabin. I was aware of a sloshing sound/noise as I was not able to sleep, with the absolute fear and terror which gripped me. There was carpet on the floor, which was a sloppy mess at 4.30 a.m. The owners of this tall ship also own the travel company, located in Sevenoaks , Kent. Now have removed themselves from everything. I am unable to highlight this on Trip Advisor, as they do not accept reviews on companies. Nor do they recognise name of tall ship. I must put it all down to a bad choice of trip. Roisin White
Posted by
Northamptonshire, England
32706 posts
No window, no porthole? I hadn't been on a tall ship with interior cabins.
In any event, if the carpet got wet, and there was no place for water to get in a window, how did all your stuff and the bedding get soaked?
I'm sorry you had a bad trip.
Having sailed on many a ship on the Atlantic and many of those trips in the winter I know that you can never guarantee calm seas in February. I'd certainly never count on it.
It isn't clear to me if you were working your passage or only a passenger.
I really don't get the "luxury" against a cabin with no window or porthole.
Posted by
OP
3 posts
Hello Nigel, I was a paying passenger, it was advertised at half_price , should have been suspicious. Even telephone contact to Kent was very poor, their 'phone connection' was poor. Truly, the days on land were fine, and 1 day sailing when sails were used, and I couls see how it all worked. I knew nothing about acceleratikn zones, trip came with wording 'no experience necessary, calm, no choppy seas etc' I was deluded by their advertising and sale of this trip, as I believed the description. There was no window in my cabin, they did suggest, when I asked, that a bilge hole???was open??there was more than a spill of water, the mattress , duvet, some clothing were soaking at 4.30am. Not a calm trip, as I was promised. I am trying to get the travel company to rethink their wording, but to no avail. I never wanted anything back from them, only to warn other people. R