Windstar Cruises is a small-ship line built around unhurried itineraries, lesser-known ports and a relaxed onboard style. Founded in 1984 and now owned by Xanterra Travel Collection, the Miami-headquartered line operates a mix of sailing yachts, Wind Star, Wind Spirit and Wind Surf, and motor yachts, Star Pride, Star Breeze and Star Legend, carrying between 148 and 310 guests.
The fleet is expanding to eight yachts with the recent arrival of Star Seeker and the addition of Star Explorer, extending Windstar’s reach into Alaska, Asia, Costa Rica, the Caribbean, Europe and the Mediterranean, and French Polynesia and the South Pacific.
Helen Beck joined Windstar as Managing Director Global Commercial after roles at Explora Journeys, Crystal Cruises, Royal Caribbean and Celebrity, brought in specifically to build the brand’s international markets beyond its heavily American guest base. Cruise Monitor spoke to Helen about what that means for Australia, why a dedicated local deployment remains years away, and how agents should be selling Windstar in the meantime.
What did Windstar bring you in specifically to fix or build?
Our focus has primarily been on our North American markets, so I joined Windstar for the specific reason of identifying and supporting the development of other key markets around the world, including Australia of course, all as part of our strategy for international growth.
We’re well underway in that journey. We’ve strengthened our focus on markets such as Australia, expanded our engagement with the trade community and are building greater awareness of what makes Windstar unique. There’s still plenty more to do, but we’re already seeing encouraging momentum and interest from advisors and guests who are discovering the brand for the first time.
Around 95 per cent of Windstar’s guests are currently American. What needs to change for that balance to shift toward markets like Australia?
One of the things I’ve learned during my time working with global markets is that there are far more similarities than there are differences between markets and demographics, and that applies in the ways we do business around the world.
The product already aligns with many of the things our Australian guests value, such as unhurried destination experiences, a relaxed onboard atmosphere, exceptional food and service and the opportunity to visit lesser-known ports.
I believe the trade support we deliver through our GSA partner, Travel The World, is already strong, so the key change we need is to grow awareness about Windstar Cruises generally and get across the breadth of our deployment. For a small-ship cruise line with seven, soon to be eight, ships in our fleet, we cover the world pretty well, sailing in Alaska, Asia, Costa Rica, the Caribbean, Europe and the Mediterranean year-round, and French Polynesia and the South Pacific year-round.
For me, the bigger opportunity isn’t changing the product, it’s continuing to build awareness in the market. As more Australian travel advisors and consumers become familiar with the Windstar difference, I believe we’ll see stronger demand emerge organically. Our role is to make it easier for trade partners to tell that story and connect the right guests with the right product, because the experience itself already has very strong appeal for Australians.
You’ve said an Australian deployment is “on my wish list” but realistically two to three years away. What has to happen before Windstar commits a yacht to this region?
I’ve come to see Australian deployment a little differently for Windstar. It’s still on my wish list, but I actually think our year-round positioning of two yachts in Tahiti and the South Pacific is doing exactly what Australian demand needs right now. With seven- to 14-night itineraries and Air Tahiti Nui now flying direct from Sydney, Polynesia is so much more accessible for our guests. And it suits the Australian style of travel perfectly: casual, relaxed luxury onboard makes Windstar a natural fit for exploring Polynesia, the Mediterranean, Northern Europe or Asia.
How should Australian agents be selling the South Pacific product now, well before any local deployment exists?
From March 2027, being able to offer Wind Star, one of our sailing yachts, on the seven-night Dreams of Tahiti round trip from Papeete using the new direct flights with Air Tahiti Nui is the perfect way to introduce Windstar Cruises to a new client, and is very well suited to honeymooners or guests celebrating anniversaries. Agents then have the opportunity to offer Star Breeze, one of our motor yachts, as she sails the longer itineraries exploring more of the South Pacific, to clients who may have already sailed on a seven-night cruise.
How does the fleet’s growth to eight yachts change the case for prioritising a market the size of Australia against the UK, Europe and Latin America?
Growing our fleet clearly gives us more deployment options around the world. With Star Seeker, we are now offering sailings in Alaska, Japan and South-East Asia, while the arrival of Star Explorer means we continue to keep two ships in Europe year-round, featuring the Canary Islands on Wind Spirit and Star Explorer’s inaugural Local Med season. The Australian cruiser is pretty well-educated given the choice of local cruising available to them, so offering small-ship cruising to those lesser-known ports is more appealing to them.
Does Windstar’s relaxed luxury, lesser-used ports positioning make Australia attractive, or a harder sell against competitors already established here?
I do think it actually makes it a harder sell for us, as the opportunity to differentiate in local cruising is more difficult. Our focus continues to be attracting that discerning traveller who is looking for our style of itineraries, lesser-used ports, a slower pace, allied with our relaxed ambiance and unpretentious luxury onboard.
What is Windstar’s message to Australian agents at Cruise360 who have limited or no experience selling the brand, and what support is behind that?
We’d love to meet you and introduce you to the Windstar Cruises brand. We have Karli Donaldson, our Regional Sales Manager, dedicated to the Australian market and based in Brisbane, and she’s there to support with training, explanations and guidance, plus we have the team from our GSA, Travel The World, on hand to assist with making bookings and answering any queries.
We are working on some hosted familiarisation trips for 2027, so more to come on those. In the meantime, we have TA Appreciation rates available for any travel advisor to book and experience Windstar themselves.
One thing we’ve found consistently is that once advisors truly understand the Windstar experience, it becomes a very natural product to sell. Our strongest advocates are often the agents who have sailed with us themselves, experienced the small-ship difference firsthand and then returned with the confidence to match the right clients to the brand.
My message to advisors is simple: take the time to discover the brand. Once you step onboard, see the destinations we access and experience the level of personalised service our guests enjoy, you quickly understand what makes Windstar different and why it holds immense appeal for your customers. And to the Australian agents who are already selling us, a heartfelt thank you. We truly value your support and look forward to growing together.
Looking at the past 12 months in this role, what would you consider a genuine early win, and where does Australia sit against your other priorities?
An early win was participating at Cruise360 last year and starting to get a feel for the market and all the opportunities here. Australia is always either number one or two in my international priorities, depending on the needs at the time, but my key priority at the moment is getting our UK set-up finalised and launched.
For a line that still sends the vast majority of its guests to North America, Beck’s approach to Australia looks less like a scramble for a dedicated ship and more like a patient bet on awareness, access and word of mouth, backed by a South Pacific product already built for the way Australians like to travel.
