Windstar Cruises now has 10 more Quick Getaway sailings on sale in Europe through August 2027, extending a three to five night format that the small ship line first tested in 2026. The current inventory gives travelers short cruise options that can fit before or after a longer land trip instead of requiring a full week at sea.
The expansion is a real product choice rather than an early concept. Windstar is selling named departures, including a four day round trip from London to Saint Malo on Star Pride and a five day Rome to Barcelona sailing in the Rivieras, with live dates and fares attached to the itineraries.
- What changed: Windstar has 10 more Quick Getaway sailings of three to five nights on sale through August 2027.
- Where: The short Europe program includes London, Belgium, northern France, Italy, the French Riviera, and Spain.
- Example: Star Pride has a four day London round trip to Saint Malo departing May 18, 2027.
- Current example fare: Windstar lists that St. Malo itinerary from $2,099 cruise only as of July 2026.
- Ship fit: The program uses small ships, including Wind Surf and Star Pride, rather than a Caribbean style megaship.
- Best use: Compare the cruise with the hotel nights, rail trips, and flights it would replace inside a longer Europe itinerary.
The short cruise experiment has become a larger program
Windstar introduced Quick Getaways in an August 2025 announcement with nine departures across five itineraries for 2026. The original collection included three night trips in southern France, Italy and France, and Belgium, plus a four night Saint Malo sailing from London.
The fresh development is the scale now visible beyond that first release. Travel Weekly reported on July 11 that Windstar has 10 more short sailings on sale through August 2027 after seeing both new guests and loyal customers use the format.
Windstar executives described the product as a way to attach a cruise to an existing land trip, work visit, or longer voyage. On one three night London round trip, passengers taking multiple cruises outnumbered guests who booked only the short sailing, showing that many buyers were using the itinerary as one piece of a larger vacation.
That pattern separates Quick Getaways from the familiar short cruise model in Florida. The Europe sailings are not built around a private island or a large ship weekend, but around compact port sequences that can replace a few hotel nights and train or air segments.
Live inventory shows what travelers can actually book
Windstar’s current Saint Malo itinerary page lists a May 18, 2027 departure on Star Pride. The four day round trip begins and ends in London, includes a full call at Saint Malo, and places one sea day between the French port and the early morning return to London.
The operator lists the cruise only fare from $2,099 and an all inclusive fare from $2,495 as of July 2026. Those numbers are snapshots rather than guarantees, so travelers should reopen the exact departure before booking and compare the cabin category, taxes, availability, and package inclusions shown at checkout.
The London departure is unusual because the itinerary starts on the Thames near the center of the city. A traveler already staying in London can therefore compare embarkation with the time and cost of reaching an airport, flying to another European city, and transferring again to a hotel.
Another live option on Windstar’s Europe inventory is Quick Getaways: Yachtsman’s Harbors of the Rivieras. The five day Rome to Barcelona trip appears with a cruise only starting fare of $2,599 as of July 2026, creating a different use case for travelers moving between Italy, France, and Spain.
Three to five nights changes the value calculation
A short sailing can reduce the number of separate hotels and transport bookings inside a multi city trip, but it does not automatically make the vacation cheaper. The useful comparison is the cruise fare plus gratuities, drinks, shore spending, and transfers against the hotel nights, rail tickets, flights, meals, and luggage handling the cruise would replace.
Port time matters more when the entire voyage lasts only a few nights. A traveler drawn to Saint Malo should examine the scheduled arrival and departure rather than treating the destination name as proof of a long visit, while a Riviera buyer should check how many ports fit into the five day sequence and how much daylight remains ashore.
The ship also changes the decision. Windstar’s smaller vessels have fewer large resort features than a modern megaship, making the experience more about the route, open decks, dining, and a quieter onboard rhythm. Deep Arrival’s Wind Surf guide can help travelers judge one of the ships used in the program without confusing the vessel choice with the new itinerary format.
A three night sample can appeal to someone unsure about committing a full week to a small ship. It can also be a poor fit for a traveler who wants several sea days, extensive entertainment, or enough time to settle into the ship before disembarkation, so duration should be treated as a tradeoff rather than an automatic benefit.
The strongest use is as part of a longer Europe trip
Windstar designed the collection around flexible combinations. The original operator release suggested adding a mini vacation to a work trip, pairing a short sailing with a land adventure, or connecting it with a longer cruise, and current reporting shows passengers are using those combinations in practice.
For a London itinerary, the cleanest plan may be to place the sailing between fixed hotel stays and book flexible rail or air after the ship returns. Travelers should leave enough time for disembarkation, port transfers, and possible schedule changes instead of connecting the return directly to a restrictive flight.
For a one way Rome to Barcelona sailing, the cruise can function as transportation between two major trip anchors. That can simplify the middle of an itinerary, although the traveler still needs to compare the actual embarkation and disembarkation ports with city center hotels because the label of a gateway city does not always describe the precise terminal.
Back to back buyers need an additional check. Two voyages may fit together on paper, but repeated ports, cabin changes, immigration steps, and separate booking terms can alter the value, so the line or travel advisor should confirm that the combination is operationally supported for the exact dates.
What the fare includes still needs a departure level check
Windstar displays cruise only and all inclusive pricing on current itinerary pages. The operator describes the all inclusive option as adding select beer, wine, cocktails, WiFi, and gratuities from $99 per guest per day, but the exact package value depends on what each traveler would otherwise buy.
A low starting fare can disappear for a preferred cabin or popular date. Travelers should price the same occupancy, cabin category, package, and cancellation terms across every option, then add travel insurance, flights, hotels, and transfers before concluding that the shorter voyage is the lower cost choice.
The early booking offer in Windstar’s 2025 launch release has expired, so it should not be treated as part of the current product. Any new promotion needs its own live terms, booking deadline, eligible departure list, and payment rules before it belongs in the comparison.
As of July 2026, the important fact is that the short sailings remain bookable through August 2027 and have expanded beyond the initial test. Windstar has not announced what comes after that window, and current reporting says it is too early for the line to share further expansion plans.
How to choose a Quick Getaway without overbuilding the trip
Start with the cities already fixed in the land itinerary, then look for a sailing whose endpoints reduce rather than add repositioning. A London round trip is easier to slot into a United Kingdom stay, while a Rome to Barcelona voyage can work for a traveler already moving west through southern Europe.
Next, compare the itinerary day by day with the experience the traveler wants most. Someone focused on Saint Malo and Mont Saint Michel should examine excursion timing and independent transport, while a Riviera traveler may care more about the sequence of small ports and the amount of time preserved in Rome and Barcelona.
Finally, keep the surrounding reservations flexible until the cruise is confirmed and ticketed. The format is short, but the trip around it can still involve international flights, hotels, rail segments, and port transfers, and one change can affect a larger chain of prepaid plans.
Windstar’s added inventory gives Europe travelers a credible alternative to either a full length cruise or a land only itinerary. The best booking is not necessarily the shortest or cheapest departure, but the one that replaces complicated transit, preserves the destinations that matter, and leaves enough buffer around a compact voyage.
