Small ship sail powered Greek Island cruise

Planet

The benefits of using sails are obvious, and we do use them, a lot. Whenever the wind conditions allow we use the sails to power the ship - as much as 80-90% of the time on many cruises.

The sustainability goes much further than using sails. The furniture in the staterooms and suites was designed and manufactured by a company committed to “lean and green manufacturing” while minimizing environmental impact at every stage of the process. They achieved ISO 14001 certification (an international environmental management system standard).

Sustainability initiatives
Some initiatives are large, like replacing engines with more efficient ones. And some may seem small, like polishing our propellers twice a year for peak efficiency. But when it comes to protecting the world’s natural surroundings, even small changes add up.

REDUCING OUR USE OF FOSSIL FUELS
Innovations in maritime technologies offer many opportunities to minimize greenhouse gas emissions, and we are working to incorporate these into our ships. We’re also repainting the hulls of our ships with a special paint that reduces drag and increases efficiency by up to 3%. Other ways we reduce fuel consumption include increasing the use of ship sails and strategically planning itineraries. We’ve also implemented lighting upgrades and HVAC enhancements to reduce energy use onboard.

SAVING FRESH WATER FOR A RAINY DAY
The ships are surrounded by seawater, yet we’re keenly aware of the importance of maintaining precious water resources for generations to come. Although seawater is not drinkable, our yachts have efficient equipment for reliably creating potable water onboard. We also encourage guests to conserve by reusing towels before having them laundered.

KEEPING TRASH OUT OF LANDFILLS
Conservation is not just about reducing consumption, it’s about reducing waste, and we have a number of initiatives to reduce, reuse, and recycle.
These include replacing paper documents with e-documents, eliminating single-serving amenity containers in staterooms, more accurately forecasting food consumption and supplies, asking suppliers to reduce packaging, and working with local communities to ensure we fully comply with local garbage segregation requirements.

SAYING NO TO SINGLE-USE PLASTICS
We have also drastically reduced single-use plastics, eliminating plastic bottles from our staterooms and restaurants, and reducing the use of straws, cups, and other plastic items.

LEAVING THE OCEAN BETTER THAN WE FOUND IT
Of course there are other forms of waste, and we work hard to reduce those as well. We upgraded our wastewater treatment systems, use environmentally acceptable lubricants where feasible, and use biodegradable, environmentally friendly cleaning supplies. We also removed all onboard incinerators to eliminate air emissions. Staff volunteer in beach clean-up days in both Seattle and Miami and our guests take part, adding their “adopt a coral” donations to our own donation to an NGO called Coral Gardeners that’s working to replant healthy corals where reefs are struggling.

FOOD THAT IS GOOD FOR YOU AND THE PLANET
Being gentle on the environment can also mean changing what you eat, since a plant-based diet saves water and reduces greenhouse gasses. For those who favour vegan meals, we now offer a plant-based, gluten-free menu prepared without added salt, oil or sugar. We have partnered with the National Health Association (NHA) to create offerings that are both nutritious and delicious, and are excited to add these to our standard and vegetarian menu choices.

People

We provide advice to our clients visiting different parts of the world where the culture will be different from their own.

By using small ships we can visit ports that are not open to larger vessels, thus spreading the financial benefit of tourism away from the large and heavily visited destinations. We are welcomed in the smaller ports as our vessel only carry a maximum of 148 passengers so we can visit smaller communities without swamping their facilities and disrupting the normal day to day life of our hosts.

We spend all day in the communities we visit, leaving plenty of time for our guests to explore and learn about their destinations. This also has the benefit of providing them with ample opportunity to spend money in the shops and restaurants of these communities. We also offer a wide range of excursions into nearby highlights and destinations that help to spread this benefit even further.