You’ll be sailing into ports that the mega-ships can’t reach. You’ll be assured of personal service and you might make friends for life along the way.
The advantages of small ship cruising are clear – whether on board a superyacht, an ex-trawler or a traditional clipper.
The crew welcomes passengers into a relaxed, club-like atmosphere where guests bond over activities such as wildlife spotting and watersports.
Tall-ship splendour
Watching the huge white sails unfurl as the crew nimbly negotiates the rigging on the three-masted Sea Cloud Spirit is spectacular. And passengers can, if they wish, climb up the masts themselves attached to harnesses. Strict safety procedures are followed, of course.
Built in 2021, the 136-guest Sea Cloud Spirit is the latest of the German-owned Sea Cloud’s three-ship fleet, all of which echo the style of the original Sea Cloud commissioned by US heiress Marjorie Merriweather Post in 1931.
Guests relax on loungers on teak decks beneath the sails and dine alfresco with barbecue feasts.
BOOK IT: 16-night ‘Magic of Central America’ Costa Rica depart on March 3 from £8,050pp excluding international flights (seacloud.com).
The Sea Cloud tall ship, pictured here, is one of Lesley Bellew’s recommendations for small ship cruising. Here, she shares 15 top options for cruisers who want no more than 245 fellow guests on board
Taste of Scotland
Loch Spelve mussels have never tasted sweeter. Within 45 minutes of leaving Oban, ex-trawler Splendour’s skipper sets down the Zodiac inflatable boat so guests can whizz across to the Invalussa mussel farm with the chef – sourcing starters for dinner that evening.
There will only be eight of you, and while one day you might be mussel shopping, the next you could be on your way to Fingal’s Cave on the Isle of Staffa to visit its basalt columns that inspired so many poets, painters and composers. Meanwhile, nature is always calling: white-tailed eagles, seals and pods of dolphins.
BOOK IT: Six-night ‘Islands and Wildlife of the Southern Hebrides’ cruise departs Oban on August 17 from £2,575pp (argyllcruising.com).
Island hopping
The MS Caledonian Sky weaves between idyllic islands in Greece and Turkey mooring in quieter ports. With a crew of 75 looking after 100 guests, life on board is attentive and friendly – while the Captain’s Bridge is open to visitors.
Generously sized cabins with timber panelling add to the comfort after days ashore visiting the Polyvotis volcano caldera on Nisyros island and tours of Milos and Syros in the Greek Cyclades islands. Guests can learn about olive oil pressing in Amorgos, in Greece, and – after arriving at Kusadasi in Turkey – visit the ancient city of Ephesus.
BOOK IT: An eight-day ‘Greek Islands Explorer’ cruise departing on May 26 from Athens is reduced from £3,995pp to £3,295pp including meals with drinks, tours and flights (aptouring.co.uk).
Sleep under stars
Take a catamaran to Mustique for a drink at the legendary Basil’s Bar (where Princess Margaret, David Bowie and Mick Jagger have all enjoyed a tipple) on a side-trip from the 112-passenger yacht Seadream. You also stop off overnight near the palm-fringed island of Bequia to sleep under the stars on a Balinese bed made up with fine linens.
The yacht’s marina includes jet skis, kayaks, paddleboards, water skis and a floating trampoline.
BOOK IT: A seven-night ‘Glorious Grenadines’ Barbados all-inclusive round-trip departs November 23, 2025; fly-cruises from £5,150pp (mundycruising.co.uk).
Conserving coral
Little ones can put on snorkels to join coral conservation projects during Seatrek sailing adventures in the islands of Komodo National Park in Indonesia. There are two summer departures on traditional 12-berth Ombak Putih, a twin-masted sailing ship that includes stops at remote communities.
BOOK IT: Nine-day cruises depart Komodo on July 28 and August 9 with prices from £6,035pp including flights (stubbornmuletravel.com).
Awesome Antarctica
Purists might say flying to Antarctica is for softies, but for those who can’t face the Drake Passage, meeting 200-guest Silver Endeavour in the White Continent is just the ticket. Silversea Cruises’ two hour flights to and from King George Island save about two days at sea, avoiding the ‘Drake shake’ where the Atlantic, Pacific and Southern oceans meet.
BOOK IT: Six-day King George Island to King George Island Expedition cruise on February 5, 2025 from £19,600 pp including door-to-door chauffeur service, international and business-class ‘Air Bridge’ flights and pre and post-cruise stays in Punta Arenas, Chile (silversea.com).
Jungle jaunt
Pictured are the majestic white sails of the Wind Star in Costa Rica. Lesley notes: ‘Late-night departures and plenty of overnights in ports give guests on Wind Star more time to explore destinations’
Late-night departures and plenty of overnights in ports give guests on Wind Star more time to explore destinations. On the four masted, 148-passenger ship’s Colon to Puerto Caldera cruise, via the Panama Canal, guests can hike through Manuel Antonio National Park to beautiful beaches and soar above the Quepos jungle on a zipline.
BOOK IT: Seven-night Costa Rica and Panama cruise departs on January 25 with prices from £4,580pp including flights (windstarcruises.co.uk).
Adventure Ahoy
Polar-class ship Greg Mortimer is a floating basecamp for up to 126 adventurers. On Wild Scotland sailings, guests board Zodiacs every morning and afternoon to view cliffs of nesting seabirds, join challenging walks or kayak coastlines. The ship’s striking hull cuts through rough seas and one of the thrills is landing on remote St Kilda.
BOOK IT: 12-night Wild Scotland voyages depart Edinburgh on May 7 and 26, 2026 from £9,005pp (aexpeditions.co.uk).
South America off-grid
Watching Magellanic penguins on Magdalena Island, Chile, is one of the highlights of Ventus Australis’ sailings through Tierra Del Fuego’s remote fjords, on South America’s southernmost tip.
The expedition ship’s 100 cabins have floor-to-ceiling windows and guests are treated to international and Patagonian menus that include locally sourced king crab and Argentinian beef.
BOOK IT: Ventus Australis’ four or eight-day itineraries from Ushuaia in Argentina are from £1,250pp excluding international flights, departing December to April (australis.com).
Galapagos dream
Only a handful of ships have licences to sail in the Galapagos, so 90-guest Santa Cruz II’s Ecuadorian expedition team arranges two or three excursions a day so guests see as much as possible, including snorkelling trips to swim alongside turtles, sea lions and walls of fish.
BOOK IT: Nine-day ‘Galapagos Islands, In Darwin’s Footsteps’ cruises depart from April to December from £5,238pp excluding international flights (travelhx.com).
Aerial in Australia
Seeing Australia from above is a thrill from one of the two Airbus H130-T2 helicopters on the 228-guest superyacht Scenic Eclipse II. Depart Darwin to cross the Cobourg Peninsula and along Queens – land’s coast, featuring Cape York Peninsula, which only smaller vessels can access.
BOOK IT: 16-day ‘Cape York & the Great Barrier Reef’ cruise departs Darwin on October 11 from £13,715pp including flights and excursions (scenic.co.uk).
Canadian ice-fishing
Quebec holds the world’s largest winter carnival, a spectacle for guests onboard the 245-passenger Le Commandant Charcot’s Canada winter cruise. Ice-fishing and dog sledding are further highlights on the hybrid electric polar exploration ship.
BOOK IT: 12-night ‘St Lawrence River in the Heart of the Boreal’ cruises from Saint Pierre Island depart on January 17 and 29 from £17,590pp including flights (uk.ponant.com).
Caribbean sailing
Intimate: The 100-guest Emerald Azzurra in Puerto Rico
Emerald Azzura’s ‘Caribbean Yachting Discovery’ takes guests to the hidden coves of Virgin Gorda in the British Virgin Islands and pink-sand beaches of Barbuda.
From the all-inclusive 100-guest yacht’s platform they can also glide across the sea on water scooters.
BOOK IT: Eight-day Antigua to Puerto Rico cruise departs on December 13 from £3,730pp including flights (emeraldcruises.co.uk).
Croatian curiosities
Croat cracker: Above is Stiniva beach on Vis. Lesley says: ‘Daily swim stops delight guests on Esperanza’s sailing through the Croatian islands’
Exploring: Heading out from the Aqua Blu expedition ship off the coast of Western Papua. ‘The yacht started life as Royal Navy survey ship HMS Beagle,’ comments Lesley
Daily swim stops delight guests on Esperanza’s sailing through the Croatian islands to Vis and Hvar. The 38-guest ship also calls at the towns of Trogir and Šibenia before arriving at the city of Zadar.
BOOK IT: Seven-night Split to Dubrovnik cruise departs on May 18 from £2,019pp excluding flights (sail-croatia.com).
Indulgent in Indonesia
Snorkel every day in the Indonesian archipelago of Raja Ampat, off the coast of Western Papua, home to two-thirds of the world’s coral species, on all-inclusive 15-suite Aqua Blu.
The yacht started life as Royal Navy survey ship HMS Beagle before being transformed into a European aristocratic family’s private vessel.
BOOK IT: Seven-night Raja Ampat cruise departs January 11 from £8,000pp excluding flights (aquaexpeditions.com).