Looking for something out of the ordinary for your next cruise? Our latest Cruise Ship Tour, in the carousel above, offers a deck-by-deck look at one of the most unusual and alluring small ships afloat, upscale line Windstar's Wind Spirit.
As can be seen in the tour, the 148-passenger Wind Spirit is a motor sailing vessel that can operate on both wind and diesel power -- one of three in the six-ship Windstar fleet. Originally built in 1988, it recently received a major makeover in dry dock that brought significantly revamped public spaces and cabins, and it now sails year-round in the South Pacific (a nearly identical sister ship, the Wind Star, operates in the Caribbean and Mediterranean).
I have always loved the looks of the Windstar cruise ships that can also use sail power in addition to the more traditional diesel. Windstar's Wind Spirit and sister ship Wind Star only have capacity for 148 passengers while the bigger Wind Surf can have up to 312 passengers. Windstar also has three traditional cruise ships, Star Breeze, Star Legend and Star Pride each with a capacity for 212 passengers.
Windstar is known as a luxury cruise line that feels more like your on a yacht. Smaller ships mean they can go to smaller and often more interesting ports of call.
