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Windjammer Still Taking Wind Out Of Vacationers' Sails

Unpaid crews leave ships grounded, customers angry

by Martin H. Bosworth
ConsumerAffairs.com

August 30, 2007

Labor disputes grounded two of the four ships in the company's fleet over the past week, leaving vacationers stranded and out thousands of dollars for vacations they can't take, or forced to put up with substandard conditions and shortened vacation times.

Scott from Troy, Michigan, and his wife Robynne booked a cruise on the Windjammer vessel Polynesia from August 5 to 11 to celebrate their wedding anniversary and his birthday. When they arrived in Aruba to board the ship, it was nowhere in sight, and they found other frustrated customers with no information as to what happened.

"In the meantime we checked into the dump they put us up in until the ship arrived. The experience is what we signed up to, not just the fact of being in Aruba," said Scott to ConsumerAffairs.com.

"The meal plan that was provided was also far short of what the cruise was to provide," Scott said. "As another way to appease the travelers a cheap tour was offered. After being forced to stay on Aruba for two extra days, most of us had seen plenty of the island and being locked up in a bus for three hours was not acceptable. In short we paid for a 6 night/5 day cruise on the Polynesia. Because of the situation we only received a 4 night/3 day cruise."

Frustrated travelers flooded online sailing and cruise forums with tales of shoddy ship maintenance, lack of food and amenities, and crew members who had not been paid for as long as three months.

Private equity firm TAG Virgin Islands is purchasing the troubled Miami-based company from the investment trust that administers it on behalf of the Burke family, descended from Windjammer founder Michael Burke, who built the company from a sailboat he purchased in 1947.

TAG Virgin Islands has publicly stated it would pay the workers, but the Wall Street Journal reported on August 23 that many crew members had yet to be paid fully.

Windjammer had previously attempted to expand its offerings by purchasing and refurbishing a vessel called The Discoverer, renamed the La Mer, and selling timeshares of the vessel to customers. But the vessel never set sail, and Windjammer was forced to backtrack and offer alternative options for angry investors.

Windjammer enjoys a devoted following by cruise enthusiasts, who love the company's laid-back style and cruise itineraries that go off the beaten path, but the recent troubles have soured some travelers on the idea of using the company again.

Wrote poster "flgator1" on the JammerBabe.com forum, "I too have hoped and prayed WJ would pull through this and sincerely hope under new leadership they rise to the top form I have experienced on my one and only sail. Sorry- I don't have the extra cash to support a company that cannot fulfill it's customer obligations, nor am I going to ask my friends to take that risk."

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