One of the most pleasurable and relaxing vacations my wife and I have ever been on. The entire staff and crew are very accommodating and the meals are 5 star restaurant quality. Kudos to all

Dealing with Maine Windjammer Cruises started out as a positive experience. Margaret, who apparently handles the office and all that entails, was always gracious and engaging over the phone. Then we arrived in Camden and headed for the office, which we just could not locate. It was Friday and we were trying to check in as we had been instructed to do, before boarding Grace Bailey on Sunday evening. We called Margaret. She told us there was no longer an office due to the pandemic. Wow, well it would have been nice to learn that up front before going crazy trying to find something that no longer existed. Not even a sign to inform incoming passengers. We called Margaret again on Saturday to ask how we could purchase merchandise, shown on the MWC website but not purchasable on line. Margaret said she would sell us stuff out of the trunk of her car but that she would no way be at the Public Landing then, Saturday. Later Margaret texted me, that she would meet us before we boarded the Grace Bailey on Sunday, late afternoon. She never showed up. She then texted, while we were at dinner on Sunday night, that she would be at the Public Landing at 8:30 Monday morning before we sailed. On Monday, after setting sail (Margaret knows the schedule) I had two missed calls from Margaret, well after noon. We sailed for a week, we returned to port, and Ive not had any attempted contact from Margaret. I bought the scrimshaw I wanted from someone else, and Tshirts from other shops. I worked in retail for years and this is not customer service. Supposedly after one sail you become an Old Salt and can buy the appropriate Tshirt claiming such, except you cant buy it on line because there are no online sales (come on now, upgrade your site) and you cant buy it from Margaret who doesnt show with her trunk of goodies. I think if you made the club, you should automatically be sent a free Old Salts shirt. Its really a small thing that would have a huge impact on business loyalty. Instead, I come away feeling frustrsted and, indeed, brushed aside, for just trying to make a purchase. Not a good experience.

We had wonderful time this week sailing on the Mistress. Captain Dillon and First Mate Andy where both excellent in their seamanship as well the additional services they provided. They created a friendly, relaxing atmosphere sailing through the fog as well as the sunshine, calm winds and gusty times.

Very nice people who have bravely taken on the mission of hosting 19th century sailing. The authenticity and romance of it is to die for. You should absolutely try it once in your life. Yes it is true that the bathroom accommodations are lacking, as would be expected with boats built in the late 1800s. So if youre looking for a pampered modern cruise, this is not for you. This is for people who want to experience the thrill and romance of real tall ship sailing.Captain Ray and his crew and his family are all very nice, accommodating people and they have done a wonderful job restoring these ships and maintaining and operating them.

The best cruise !!!...A century old Schooner, with History.....Out of all the windjammers at the harbour, this was my choice....Captain Billy Chisum & 1st. mateJess were the best guides for the scenic trip... As a photographer,I got all my nautical compositions,for my satisfaction.....Come see the Maine frontier....

My husband and I just got back from a six day cruise upon the schooner Mercantile. We and two others were the only passengers who had not been on these cruises NUMEROUS times before. Camden, ME is very picturesque. Several schooners in port. The food was GREAT; cooked on/in a cast iron stove in the galley. Two snacks and three full meals a day. Coffee and hot water, fruit and other goodies were available all day in the galley. The cook and his mess mate were very helpfully, polite and interesting as were all the crew members. Lobster bake on shore was lovely. Schooner, our cabin and all accommodations were neat and clean.The website gives you the information as to what you can expect on the cruise......if you are a DIVA you may want to stick with Holland America. My husband and I are planning on returning to cruise with Maine Windjammer Cruises again this fall. :-)

Wow! I have to say I was a tad surprised about how tight things were and how different the way of life, but my mother and I had a wonderful time on the sail we just took. Mom had difficulty with the ladders, and everyone (captain, crew and guests alike) were all supportive and helpful all the time. It was, indeed, what we were looking for - a little adventure with not a lot of stressful activity. Thanks, Captain Ray and Obi and Dillon and Jen for a really great trip!

Although its been a few years since I took my entire family on a 4 day on the Merchantile, it was one of the best and most memorable experiences of my life. It is like a short version of what it must have been like when people sailed from Europe to the Americas on wooden ships. It wasnt easy, but it was worth it! I highly recommend this! My wife and 3 sons do also. I think my youngest was about 12 when we went. The experience was worth everything, and the food was out of this world good!

We are just back from a 5-day sail on Grace Bailey. This trip exceeded our expectations! Every day brought a different adventure: We enjoyed an exhilarating fast and windy sail one day, and slower, sunny cruising on another. It was restorative to unplug and live a sailors life for a few days. The crew -- Captains Ray and Chris, First mate Obie, Reuben, Tyler and Brad -- were charming, helpful, and entertaining, whether we were discussing celestial navigation and latitude and longitude, quick ways to determine knots, or singing along with Obies concertina or ukelele. We especially enjoyed the company of our fellow passengers, ranging in age from 12 to 70s. The food was fabulous -- home-cooked and locally sourced, served family-style. The ship is 1880s authentic, so if you are looking for a spacious modern cabin and modern bathroom facilities, you will probably be happier elsewhere. Highly recommend and Id do it again!

I feel kind of bad writing this, but I also feel people should be warned! This is a very rough cruise - its like camping, but rougher! No running water, toilets dont work very well and have a dank, fetid smell, the cabins that youre given are like shelves - low ceilings, cramped quarters, thin walls, musty smell. The blankets are dusty and grimy. In the cabin, you can hear every zipper, every whisper, every snore from the other passengers because the walls are so thin: you will not get any sleep, even with earplugs.You brush your teeth over the side of the boat. No need to bring toiletries because theres no space to use them in!You spend all your waking time on the unenclosed deck, no cover available, talking to the other passengers or reading or sketching or whatever. So you get up on deck at 8 am or earlier, and youre on the boat, hanging out there in the wind and sun, until the sun goes down. This routine is broken up only by meals (surprisingly, the food is good) and the occasional stop in a tourist town.I actually had the more deluxe cabin with a private toilet, but the whole experience was awful (and I had to get the 1 crew member who knew how to help flush the toilet - how embarrassing)! I cant believe anyone would go on this cruise if they knew what it was like! Not totally true - my 19-year-old son liked it and he would go again. He liked getting the sails up and helping with the sailing work; he agrees it was similar to a rough camping experience. But in general, I cant believe this outfit has any repeat customers! Im pretty sure that, out of our group of 28 passengers, 25 of them would never go again - and wish they had never gone! I think some of us were even traumatized by this experience!At least it didnt rain! God, imagine that - we would have been stuck on this ship for days just sitting on deck in the rain! We definitely would have bailed when they took us in to town - we almost did anyway . . .

Its been a few years since our trip.We have photos of our voyage on our bedroom wall and its like it happened yesterday.Grace Bailey at sunset, our lobster bake on Devils island, and one of the sails being raised. We had such a beautiful and unique experience its a treasure.When I read the few negative reviews I feel sorry for those so spoiled by progress. Theyre incapable of truly enjoying this amazing trip back in time.Thanks for all the great memories.William Greene and Elizabeth Kearns

Excellent experienceLoved itGreat crewJust wished we had stopped at different ports along the way for something to do

My choice of schooner was the Mercantile for a three-day sail. I will start off by saying I had a fabulous time. Enjoyed my fellow passengers and especially the captain and crew who were just wonderful.I think its only fair to tell anyone considering a sail that you need to be somewhat in good shape (for vertical ladders and sloping decks) and not claustrophobic (tiny cabins with cozy head space over the beds), AND not averse to pumping out the head when you use it, youll find this a great experience. If youre interested in sailing history, love the idea of running up and down the bay in an historic 100-year-old vessel, can keep yourself entertained with bird watching, reading or other activities, and if youd like to participate by raising and lowering sails and anchors and even washing dishes (all optional) and if you have a good sense of humor, youll probably love this trip. Bring your appetite, singing voice and lots of smiles. I was grateful to help the Mercantile celebrate her 100th birthday.

My husband loves sailing and I was an avid landlubber until I agreed to try a new adventure with him on Sept. 1-6th, 2019 when we set sail around Penobscot Bay on the fabulous 103 year old WINDJAMMER schooner, THE MERCANTILE, owned by Captain Williamson and skippered by Captain Christopher S. and his talented and professional crew. What a blast we had. !!!!!! I came armed with anti seasick meds and found instead my first sea legs. Having never sailed in my life, I cant wait to sail again. The professionalism, kindness, generosity and patience of the Captain and crew....(Dylan, Sam, Austin, Obie and Tiffany) calmed my reservations and let me enjoy this special time with my new husband. We pumped bilge together, flaked a few sails, filled Charlie Noble and the drinking pump. We studied the maps...oops, the charts, with the Captain.We felt like we back in Scout camp when it came time to do the dishes. I cannot leave out our Chefs in the Galley: the meals....I still smell the delicious scents wafting up the companionway. Austin and Obie outdid themselves creating special dishes at every meal for those with a dietary requests, while creating meals for all that were plentiful, hot and filling. Desserts !!! Sigh...no chocolate but we did have Grandmas molasses cookies hot from the oven. And, the creamer for the coffee was from Pfaltzgraff, making me feel at home as it has been my favorite set of dishes since 1972. I did take a picture. I bumped my head a few timesbut I did learn to duck quickly. Thanks Sam for the constant reminders! We promise to sail with you again and I promise, Captain Chris, that we will not pack 6 bags again. We treasure the amused face you made as we came on board on Sunday night. I will send yall some pictures if you let us know where to send them. I have sent them to the friends we made (the other passengers) and they like them. Thank you all for this peaceful time at sea. Thanks for the memories and my new schooner family. Fondly, Nancy Urquhart-Guerin and Wilfred Thomas Guerin,Warwick, Rhode Island. We give you all 5 stars!!!!!!!

To say the cabins are small is an understatement. There is room for only one person to stand. I am short and could not sit up in bed as it was under the deck. Meaning I had to crawl in. There was a diaper taped to the ceiling just inches from my face. During the cruise I learned that it was to catch water as the boat leaked. It rain while I was on board and I was one of the few lucky ones whose diaper held and my bed stayed dry. Everyone else had a wet bed.While I love sailing, there are no comfortable places to sit on deck. No chairs and few places where you can lean your back on something. I was planning to read and sketch while the boat sailed, but that wasnt a reality.I saw the cook use the bathroom near the kitchen then return to cooking without washing her hands - there are no sinks in the bathrooms, so she would have had to wash her hands in the kitchen sink. You and your fellow passengers cant wash your hands after using the bathroom, as there is no sink and we were told we could not use the sink in the kitchen.You will not be taking a shower during this trip. Yes, there is sort of a shower, but they tell you over and over not to use it. You have to carry an open wash pan of water to your room to wash, then back up the stairs to dump. Not easy on a rocking boat.We were to stay for the entire week, but got off after 3 days when the boat docked to pick up some other passengers. We were not alone in doing this. All the other groups who planned to stay the entire week got off too.This cruise is very expensive, thus I was expecting a more deluxe offering. Everything is crude. And passengers are expected to help wash dishes and clean up after each meal. Im on vacation, I dont want to do kitchen duty.Needless to say none of the folks in our group have been back or plan to ever return. Go camping in Acadia, youll have a better time and better accommodations in a tent.

My wife chose this trip because it was our 10 year wedding anniversary. I was not going to let myself get excited; because I have always loved the idea of sailing and yet have never been and did not want to get my hopes up. My only trepidation was having to put up with other people who had no sense of humor.So, Sunday we arrived just an hour before check-in and upon arrival the nice lady at the front desk was probably far more cheerful than I would be at that hour. But I loved it!We brought our small amount of gear on board and was shown our rooms after a brief lesson by the Captain. Our room and beds were small and by no means should you expect one of these rooms to be of cruise like quality, because you should not want to spend your days in your cabin and that is the point! We slept pretty well that first night before we set sail and all of our stuff fit neatly in our cabin with room to stand and change. The ship was probably around 140 years old and was maybe 100 feet in length, with large wood masts heavy sails and you can hear the very slight creaking in the wood all around the boat as it rocked with the ocean. I was totally in love with her already.That night I met a few of the crew and passengers on deck while we kind of introduced ourselves in a non formal fashion which made me more at ease and since I clicked with everyone that I had met, I knew that I was going to have a great time.The next morning they served some Mexican omelette type thing which was cooked on a wood stove down in the galley, which I thought was cool as hell. Now, this omelette set the tone for how the rest of the meals were going to be MOST EXCELLENT!We were invited to help raise sails once we were pushed off out of port and like a kid in a toy store, I did.There was a small complement of crew and passengers, 14 maybe in total, so it was a lot less crowded than it could be. During that time I met the rest of the passengers and crew I did not meet the night before. I went down into the galley to thank the cook that made that fantastic breakfast and ended up chopping garlic.We sailed what seemed like forever and not long enough. Our first stop was Stoningham where we dropped anchor and ate a wonderful dinner, lunch was good too, and also it had garlic.Now when my wife had mentioned that it was a working boat, I thought to myself, GREAT IT WORKS, who knew? LOL, well I ended up doing all kinds of work, not because I was forced or it was mandatory, but because it was something you wanted to do.Once we got back, we hauled anchor again and set sail for another island, which had no one on it and we went ashore and walked its beautiful sandy beaches. I think that night we had lobster cooked over a fire.The next day we raised anchor and set sail to Rockport where after another wonderful dinner we sat and listened to one of the Captains poems that he wrote and was published, he read other things that he liked and we all sat there and listened as we drank our beers and relaxed the night away.The next day we sailed back to Camden and after playing a few jokes on Captain Ray, it was time to go home. I think that I speak for pretty much everyone on board when I say we wanted to stay and everything we had seen and done all over again. I just want to say thank you to Captain Christopher, Dillon, Dawson, Sara, and Collin.I will remember this to be the best anniversary trip ever. Even better than that cruise ship we took for our honeymoon. Oh and speaking of cruise ships, I found out from other ships crews that the Chamber of Commerce has been catering to the large cruise ships which is taking away business to this unique to Maine Schooner sailing. I questioned the crew I was on board with but they just shook their heads without a response. It is too bad if its true because it was such an amazing experience that I feel that everyone should have a chance to enjoy.Thank you for the most beautiful and memorable experience,Douglass and Dorothy

Loved my cruise in late July early August onboard Grace Bailey. Yes if your looking for cruise ship amenities this isnt going to be your cup of tea, but if your interested in an authentic sailing experience in a true sailing schooner from the 1800s in the beauty of Penobscot bay, then this cruise cant be beaten. Captain Ray and his crew look after your wellbeing and ensure you wont be disappointed.

Maine Windjammer Cruises is a delight to deal with. Each and every person involved in their operations goes out of their way to please.We have sailed a dozen times with MWC, and our next trip is booked for May, 2018. Each trip is unique and wonderful in its own way. We have sailed under perfect blue skies and sunshine, and we have had a full weekend of blustery pouring rain, still spending time on deck in rain gear. The cozy galley gets a lot of use during rainstorms. (Cards, anyone? Snacks?) A few people have on occasion left a cruise due to bad weather. But one can never change the weather, and the majority of us take the occasional bad along with all the good!These are not modern cruise ships, for sure! They are 19th century sailing cargo ships, rebuilt below to carry passengers. The cabins are small, but fully adequate. The heads have no sinks, so each toilet is equipped with a dispenser of hand sanitizer. The showers and toilets are operated with pumps, and complete instructions for using them are given during orientation on every trip. There is plenty of fresh water for drinking or washing available from hand pumps on deck, and hot water is always available in the galley. No, its not a cruise ship, but a bit of roughing it is fun, and so worth the adventures to be had exploring spectacular Penobscot Bay and its islands from the spacious deck. We are even provided with canoe-type seat backs for added comfort.Want to help? Do as much or as little as you like. Nothing at all is required. We enjoy helping out by hoisting and lowering sails, handling sheets, raising the anchor, doing dishes, and even taking a turn at the helm. We get a real feel for life as it once was on the high seas.A windjammer vacation may not be for everyone, but it certainly is a rewarding experience for those with a sense of adventure! Please come join us!Diane and Gary Wemyss

Maine Windjammers with Captain Ray and Captain Chris was a great way to spend five days seeing the islands of downeast Maine. They promise an authentic Windjammer sailing experience and they deliver.My wife and I spent five days on the Grace Bailey, with a revolving cast of other travelers, ranging in age from 12 to 74, and all were interesting and fun.But much to my surprise, the hardworking crew (Obi, Brad, Tyler, and Reuben) turned out to be terrifically interesting people in their own rights. Obi is a softspoken giant who makes his own musical instruments. Brad talks knowledgeably with passengers about Halo and Andrew Lloyd Weber Musicals, Tylers lasagne ranks up with the best of your Italian nana, and Reuben is taking a break from working on housing in devastated regions of the world.They and the Captains are the true social lubricant on this boat, keeping everyone happy and fed.The work is real, if you are willing (raising and lowering sails and anchors), and the boat is genuine (cabins for two are about 3 by 6), but they will show you every nook and cranny. For instance, Captain Chris explained how the rudder gear box worked, while we greased it).This is not a luxury cruise. Youll want a good shower when you come home, but it is a really rewarding and fun experience.